The number of people affected by an outbreak of the winter vomiting bug could have passed one million, new figures show.
The number of laboratory-confirmed cases of the norovirus has reached 3,538 in England and Wales, up from 3,046 last week and an 83% increase on the 1,934 cases at this time last year, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) said.
But the HPA has said that for every reported case an estimated 288 go unreported, meaning there could be 1.01 million cases, up from just under 880,000 last week.
The HPA said that in the two weeks to December 23 there were 70 reported hospital outbreaks of the virus, compared to 61 in the previous fortnight, bringing the total of outbreaks for the season to 538.
Have you had the virus? Contact dan.charles@glosmedia.co.uk.
The number of laboratory-confirmed cases of the norovirus has reached 3,538 in England and Wales, up from 3,046 last week and an 83% increase on the 1,934 cases at this time last year, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) said.
But the HPA has said that for every reported case an estimated 288 go unreported, meaning there could be 1.01 million cases, up from just under 880,000 last week.
The HPA said that in the two weeks to December 23 there were 70 reported hospital outbreaks of the virus, compared to 61 in the previous fortnight, bringing the total of outbreaks for the season to 538.
Have you had the virus? Contact dan.charles@glosmedia.co.uk.