Viral gastroenteritis is an infection of your intestines that typically causes watery diarrhea, pain or cramping in your abdomen, nausea or vomiting, and sometimes fever.
Viral gastroenteritis is caused by viruses . Viruses invade normal cells in your body. Many viruses cause infections that can be spread from person to person.
People commonly call viral gastroenteritis "stomach flu," but the term is not medically correct. Viral gastroenteritis is an infection of the intestines, not the stomach, and it is not caused by influenza (flu) viruses . The flu vaccine does not protect against viral gastroenteritis.
Viral gastroenteritis is acute, meaning it happens suddenly and lasts a short time. Most cases of viral gastroenteritis last less than a week, and most people get better on their own without medical treatment. In some cases, viral gastroenteritis may cause severe symptoms or may lead to dehydration.
How common is viral gastroenteritis?
Viral gastroenteritis is very common. Norovirus is the most common cause of viral gastroenteritis. In the United States, norovirus causes 19 to 21 million cases of viral gastroenteritis each year.1 Other viruses that cause gastroenteritis are less common.