MedlinePlus: Gastroenteritis

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Illustration of the digestive system organs

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National Institutes of Health
- The primary NIH organization for research on Gastroenteritis is the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

Gastroenteritis

Also called: Stomach flu

Have you ever had the "stomach flu?" What you probably had was gastroenteritis - not a type of flu at all. Gastroenteritis is an inflammation of the lining of the intestines caused by a virus, bacteria or parasites. Viral gastroenteritis is the second most common illness in the U.S. It spreads through contaminated food or water, and contact with an infected person. The best prevention is frequent hand washing.

Symptoms of gastroenteritis include diarrhea, abdominal pain, vomiting, headache, fever and chills. Most people recover with no treatment.

The most common problem with gastroenteritis is dehydration. This happens if you do not drink enough fluids to replace what you lose through vomiting and diarrhea. Dehydration is most common in babies, young children, the elderly and people with weak immune systems.

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

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Viral Gastroenteritis(National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
Viral Gastroenteritis(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Also available in Spanish

Basics	Learn More	Multimedia & Cool Tools
Overviews Diagnosis/Symptoms Treatment Prevention/Screening	Disease Management Specific Conditions Related Issues	No links available
Research	Reference Shelf	For You
Clinical Trials Journal Articles	Organizations	Children Teenagers

Overviews
- Viral Gastroenteritis(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Diagnosis/Symptoms
- Stool Culture(American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
- Stool Tests(Nemours Foundation)
Treatment
- Gastroenteritis: First Aid(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Prevention/Screening
- Hand Washing: An Easy Way to Prevent Infection(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
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Disease Management
- JAMA Patient Page: Preventing Dehydration from Diarrhea(American Medical Association) - Links to PDF
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Specific Conditions
- Foodborne Illness(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
  Also available in Spanish
- Norovirus Infection(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
- Norovirus Infection(National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
- Norovirus: Questions & Answers(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
  Also available in Spanish
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Related Issues
- Facts about Noroviruses on Cruise Ships(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
- Norovirus: Food Handlers(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
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Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Norovirus(National Institutes of Health)
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Gastroenteritis(National Institutes of Health)
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Journal Articles
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
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Organizations
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
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Children
- Adenovirus(Nemours Foundation)
- Infectious Diarrhea(Nemours Foundation)
  Also available in Spanish
- Vomiting(Nemours Foundation)
  Also available in Spanish
- “Stomach Flu”(Nemours Foundation)
  Also available in Spanish
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Teenagers
- Dehydration(Nemours Foundation)
  Also available in Spanish
- Gastrointestinal Infections and Diarrhea(Nemours Foundation)
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