Public health officials in Quebec and New Brunswick are fighting what they call one of the worst outbreaks of viral gastroenteritis in years, which has dogged nearly three dozen institutions in both provinces.

At least 29 health-care centres in the greater Montreal area alone report viral outbreaks in the last month that infected staff and patients, triggered quarantine measures and forced officials to postpone some elective procedures.

Hand washing is key to stopping the spread of infection, said Dr. Joseph Portnoy, director of infection control at the Jewish General Hospital.
(CBC)

In New Brunswick, several hospitals were forced to close their doors in recent weeks in an attempt to control the virus's spread.

Officials believe the outbreaks were caused by a more virulent and resistant strain of the Norwalk virus, which has been blamed for similar outbreaks in Europe, Japan and the U.S.

The infection causes diarrhea, vomiting, stomach and muscle cramps, and nausea that can persist for days, but are rarely life-threatening.

But it can make life miserable for the elderly, or people recovering from illness. "It's dehydration, and it's weakness and if someone's already weak and hardly moving it makes them move less and they're subject to all kinds of complications like pneumonia and other things," said Dr. Joseph Portnoy, a specialist in infectious diseases at the Jewish General Hospital.

Officials at the Montreal hospital postponed elective surgeries Monday until further notice, in order to free up beds, and give staff a chance to recover from the outbreak.

"We're also trying to restrict visitors, and restrict other people from coming in, so it's been very difficult. It's leading to a large headache in our emergency room, which is overcrowded and backing up terribly," said Mark Miller, director of infection control at the hospital.

Day surgeries will continue as planned, but the outbreak is interfering with the hospital's normal routine, Miller added. "There's new people, both patients and staff, getting sick every day, and so we're trying as much as possible to quarantine those areas, and to isolate those patients, and the other people in contact with them."

The healthy aren't immune either. The bug has hit the Montreal Canadiens, with at least eight players and one coach reporting infection.

"It affected almost everyone on the team in some way, [and] it went through the team quickly," said forward Mike Johnson Tuesday.

"It was a tough bug for a lot of us to get. I don't even know what it was, but it was very infectious. It went right through us. I think now it's past, and I think we're ready to play some hockey, and hopefully get this team winning again," said right-winger Michael Ryder.

The Canadiens have lost three games in a row after enjoying a winning streak in December.

In total, 13 of Montreal's 17 hospitals and 16 long-term care facilities have reported gastroenteritis outbreaks.

Health officials say the outbreaks are distinct and unrelated to a string of C. difficile flare-ups in Quebec hospitals last fall that claimed the lives of more than a dozen people.