Table of Contents
- Overview
- Symptoms
- Treatment
- Prevention
- Images
Rotavirus infection; Norwalk virus; Gastroenteritis - viral; Stomach flu
Symptoms
Abdominal pain Diarrhea Nausea - Vomiting
Other symptoms may include:
- Chills
- Clammy skin
- Excessive sweating
- Fever
- Joint stiffness
- Leakage (incontinence) of stool
- Muscle pain
- Poor feeding
-
Vomiting blood (very rare) Weight loss
Signs and tests
Your health care provider will look for signs that the body does not have enough water (dehydration). These include:
- Dry or sticky mouth
- Lethargic or comatose (severe dehydration)
- Low blood pressure
- Low or no urine output; concentrated urine appears dark yellow
- Markedly sunken soft spots (fontanelles) on the top of an infant's head
- No tears
- Sunken eyes
Tests that examine stool samples may be used to identify the specific virus. This is usually not needed for viral gastroenteritis. A stool culture may be done to identify a bacterial cause for diarrhea.
Previous Section
Review Date: 04/12/2010
Reviewed By: Linda J. Vorvick, MD, Medical Director, MEDEX Northwest Divison of
Physician Assistant STudies, University of Washington School of
Medicine; and George F. Longstreth, MD, Department of
Gastroenterology, Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program, San
Diego, CA. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director,
A.D.A.M., Inc.
A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org)
