The latest figures on the number of people in London hospitals with norovirus show cases have increased by nearly 90% in the last two weeks.
Around 100 more beds are taken up by people with the illness, which causes sickness and diarrhoea, compared with the same time period last year.
The increase comes as the UK Health Security Agency warns of a new wave of the illness, with people who have had the virus potentially at risk again.
Visits to the NHS.uk webpage on norovirus have surged by 40% in the last week – from 53,052 (12-18 February) to 74,324 (19-25 February) – more than double the number of visits for the same week in 2023/24 (35,522).
NHS London’s chief nurse Karen Bonner said: “The rising number of norovirus cases in London hospitals is putting the NHS under increasing pressure at what is already a difficult time for health services.
“Hospitals remain very busy because of seasonal illnesses and it is vital that people do everything they can to reduce the spread of norovirus, which causes sickness and diarrhoea.”
To avoid the spread of norovirus, people are encouraged to wash their hands frequently with soap and water and avoid mixing with other people until they have not had symptoms for two days.
Karen added: “While pressures on hospitals remain incredibly high, people should continue to use NHS services in the normal way – using 111 and 111 online if you need advice and support and only using 999 or attending A&E in life-threatening emergencies.”
