You know diarrhea is likely viral if it starts suddenly with watery stools, vomiting, stomach cramps, fever, and aches, usually lasting a few days, and you haven't eaten contaminated food or taken antibiotics, but seeing a doctor is best for severe cases, dehydration, or if it lasts long. Viral gastroenteritis (stomach flu) symptoms often include nausea, headache, and body aches, and it spreads easily, unlike bacterial infections that might have different origins.
Watery, usually nonbloody diarrhea — bloody diarrhea usually means you have a different, more severe infection. Nausea, vomiting or both. Stomach cramps and pain.
What are the symptoms of viral gastroenteritis?
Distinguishing between viral and bacterial causes of gastroenteritis can be challenging, as their symptoms may overlap. However, findings like fever, bloody or mucoid stools, or a history of recent antibiotic use or hospitalization help alert clinicians to the possibility of a bacterial etiology.
Acute diarrhea is characterized by the sudden passage of watery or loose stools that occur frequently—more than 3 times within 24 hours. The additional symptoms that may occur include nausea, vomiting, fever, abdominal pain, and other constitutional discomfort.
Diarrhea symptoms may include belly cramps and an urgent need to go to the bathroom. Loss of fluids (dehydration) is one of the more serious side effects. Treatment usually involves replacing lost fluids. You may need an infection-fighting medicine (antibiotic) if a bacterial infection is the cause.
Non-infectious diarrhea DOES NOT spread from person-to-person. Who gets it? Anyone can catch infectious diarrhea. It can spread especially quickly among babies and young children who are not toilet-trained or who may not wash their hands well after going to the bathroom.
How is gastroenteritis diagnosed? Your healthcare provider will perform an exam and ask about your medical history. Your healthcare provider will likely ask for a stool sample to determine the source of your illness and whether it's bacterial or viral.
Types of diarrhea
Symptoms of a viral infection depend on where you're infected, but some common ones include:
Norovirus, the highly contagious stomach bug that causes vomiting and diarrhea, is surging again. Here's what to expect this winter and how to protect yourself. Norovirus, the infamous "winter vomiting disease," is surging again across the United States.
Watery diarrhea is when you pass loose, liquid stool. It often occurs due to a viral or bacterial stomach infection. It can also be from food intolerances, medication side effects, and gastrointestinal conditions like Crohn's disease and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
Six common signs of norovirus include sudden vomiting, watery diarrhea, stomach pain/cramps, nausea, headache, and muscle aches, often appearing 12-48 hours after exposure and lasting 1-3 days, leading to potential dehydration.
Stools will often have a milky muddy water color which can be lemon yellow to milky white with a strong smell. The infection may be accompanied with a high-grade fever. If there are no complications, vomiting usually stops within the first 1~2 days, and diarrhea ceases within a week.
It's important to note that if diarrhea is caused by bacteria, your body needs to get rid of the bacteria first by letting diarrhea run its course. If they're taken too soon, anti-diarrheal medication can make symptoms worse and keep you from clearing the infection.
Most of the time, diarrhea is simply your gut's way of getting rid of a harmful invader, like a bacteria or virus. However, in some cases, diarrhea is caused by a malfunction of the gut, as is the case with inflammatory bowel disease. Many viruses can cause diarrhea.
Schedule a doctor's visit for an adult with these symptoms:
Diarrhea lasts more than two days without improvement. Excessive thirst, dry mouth or skin, little or no urination, severe weakness, dizziness or lightheadedness, or dark-colored urine, which could indicate dehydration.
COVID-19-related diarrhea and nausea
"There is no definite way to tell early on what is causing your symptoms, however, diarrhea caused by COVID-19 tends to be more watery, yellow or green in color and may be accompanied by cramping and bloating.
Most cases of diarrhoea clear up after a few days without treatment. Try to drink plenty of fluids to avoid dehydration. Drink small sips of water often. Eat as soon as you feel able to.
All bivalve shellfish such as clams, geoducks, mussels, scallops, and oysters can transmit norovirus. Illness outbreaks are most often linked to oysters because they are commonly eaten raw.
But your doctor may be able to determine the cause by listening to your medical history and doing a physical exam. If necessary, they can also order a blood or urine test to help confirm a diagnosis, or a "culture test" of tissue to identify bacteria or viruses.
Medications like loperamide (Imodium®) or bismuth subsalicyclate (Pepto-Bismol®) can make the illness last longer. The most important thing you can do is make sure your child gets plenty of fluids so they do not get dehydrated.
Both can cause abdominal symptoms. Bacterial and viral infections have similar symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, but a stool test may distinguish between them.
However, in Campylobacter infections, a study published in 1982 showed that antibiotics must be given within four days after symptom onset,21 and a recent meta-analysis showed that antibiotic treatment shortened the duration of symptoms by only 1.3 days.