The story begins this Thursday, March 10, 2016. In 9 communes of Vendée (85) and Loire-Atlantique (44), 825 children present the same symptoms: vomiting, diarrhea, fever. Suspicion immediately fell on the company which provided meals to the canteens of the schools concerned. Faced with the scale of the affair, the mayors seized the Regional Health Agency (ARS) of Pays-de-la-Loire, located in Nantes. It has just published the conclusions of its analyzes.
Verdict: epidemiological investigations and samples taken from patients confirm that they were indeed victims of a “collective food poisoning, due to a norovirus”. This was indeed found in the stools of children.
A cold Piedmontese salad in question?
Norovirus (or Norwalk virus) is usually rife in the winter and is responsible for gastroenteritis : fairly common, it spreads mainly through poor hygiene. To protect yourself from it, it is essential to wash your hands frequently (especially after going to the toilet and before preparing food), to avoid contact with infected people and to favor cooked food.
However, according to the ARS, the company which prepares meals for schoolchildren would be out of the question: the analyzes carried out on control samples failed to detect the presence of norovirus, despite a strong suspicion on a dish. in particular – a cold Piedmontese salad. “In view of the investigations carried out, the hypothesis of contamination at the time of preparation was therefore not retained. this entry “concludes the Regional Health Agency.
As for the children, more fear than harm: the symptoms disappeared in 24 hours, even if two of the 825 children concerned had to undergo a passage through pediatric emergencies before being able to return to their home. Phew!
