An outbreak of gastroenteritis in a psycho-geriatric hospital associated with a small round structured virus.

An outbreak of gastroenteritis in a psycho-geriatric hospital is described. Small round structured viruses, morphologically similar to Norwalk agent, were seen in stool samples from four patients. Although the illness was mild, 67 patients and 30 nurses on four wards were affected over a period of 4 weeks. Because of shortage of staff and isolation facilities, difficulty was experienced in introducing effective control measures.