Gastrointestinal Illness Cruise Ships

The use of onshore caterers for off-ship excursions has previously been reported as a risk factor for gastrointestinal illness amongst cruise ship passengers.

Gastrointestinal illness cruise ships. Cruise ships must report onboard cases of gastrointestinal illness to the CDC as they approach a US. The study was carried out from January 2011 to December 2013 on cruise Ship A including passengers and crew who presented with symptoms suggestive of acute respiratory infection ARI influenza-like illness ILI and gastrointestinal illness GI. Following investigations in 1972-1973 of outbreaks of enteric disease on cruise ships using American ports a surveillance system was established which required that 24 hours before arrival in port each ship report the number of persons with diarrheal illness seen by the ships physician during the cruise.

Cruise ship staff send this report any time the ship is in the United States or within 15 days of arriving at a US. Celebrity Solstice which carries almost 3000 passengers is the leading ship of the Solstice-class of cruise ships and has confirmed multiple cases of gastrointestinal illnesses. The World Health Organization WHO has determined that most of the gastrointestinal disease occurrences on cruise ships are associated with the consumption of contaminated food or water.

4 Reports of gastrointestinal symptoms aboard cruise ships are common. 4 A cruise-associated diarrhoeal disease outbreak was defined as the occurrence of diarrhoeal symptoms among at least 3 per cent of passengers on a cruise. Cruise ships are required by the CDCs Vessel Sanitation Program VSP to report all onboard cases of gastrointestinal illness 24 hours prior to arrival in any US.

If 3 or more of the onboard population becomes sick within two weeks of a planned call on. The use of onshore caterers for off-ship excursions has previously been reported as a risk factor for gastrointestinal illness amongst cruise ship passengers4 A cruise-assoc-iated diarrhoeal disease outbreak was defined as the occurrence of diarrhoeal symptoms among at least 3. If the number of.

When the programme began none of the cruise ships passed periodic VSP sanitation inspections. The number of people hit with a gastrointestinal illness on a Royal Caribbean International cruise ship has swelled to nearly 500 a company spokeswoman. The actual incidence of gastrointestinal illness determined by a questionnaire survey of passengers sailing on nine cruises was found to be at least four times as high as that recorded in the medical logs.

Port after visiting a foreign port. The symptoms seem to suggest norovirus a highly contagious condition that has been responsible for gastrointestinal cruise ship outbreaks in the past. As reported in the current study a large number of cruise ship passengers were senior people andor subjects with underlying conditions who are at increased risk for influenza complications 17.