At a glance
Learn about the gastrointestinal illness outbreak on Silversea Cruises ship Silver Nova in April 2024.
Outbreak details
Cruise Line: Silversea Cruises
Cruise Ship: Silver Nova
Voyage Dates: March 31–April 16, 2024
Voyage number: SN240331016
Final case counts:
- Number of passengers who reported being ill during the voyage out of total number of passengers onboard: 28 of 633 (4.42%)
- Number of crew who reported being ill during the voyage out of total number of crew onboard: 1 of 538 (0.19%)
Predominant symptom: diarrhea
Causative agent: E. coli
Actions in response to the outbreak
In response to the outbreak, Silversea Cruises and the crew aboard the ship reported the following actions:
- Made announcements to notify onboard passengers and crew of the outbreak, encourage case reporting, and encourage good hand hygiene.
- Isolated ill passengers and crew.
- Increased cleaning and disinfection procedures according to the ship's outbreak prevention and response plan.
VSP is remotely monitoring the situation, including reviewing the ship's outbreak response and sanitation procedures.
More information
Cases
Gastrointestinal illness is a commonly used term for acute gastroenteritis (AGE). Cruise ships report cases that meet our case definition for AGE. We define a reportable case of AGE as
- Three or more loose stools within a 24-hour period or what is more than normal for that person OR
- Vomiting along with one of the following symptoms: diarrhea, muscle ache, headache, abdominal cramp, or fever.
Case totals
Cases reported are totals for the entire voyage. It does not mean all people are sick at the same time, such as when they arrive or leave a port or ship.