Likelihood of catching a stomach bug

Worriedmamma111 · 2025-10-28T17:05:50+00:00

What is the likelihood of me or my child catching a stomach bug from a child in a waiting room in hospital? Said child was sat there with a bowl with some sick in it but not actively sick while we were there. Tried to keep as much distance as possible (probably only about 2-3 metres though due to the size of the room). Did best not to let child touch surfaces and cleaned hands with anti bac and then washed straight after. Washed all clothes as soon as we got back home. We were there for about 45 mins. I’m guessing it’s going to be a stressful few days to see if we’ve caught it (how long is the incubation period?)

Balloonhearts · 28/10/2025 17:08

Possible but unlikely. Most bugs are droplet-borne so if he wasn't actively vomiting or coughing near you, you probably haven't caught it.

olderbutwiser · 28/10/2025 17:09

I would say very very unlikely. Most gastro infections go hand to mouth. And they may have had something that wasn't catchable - an allergic reaction (can cause D&V in kids) or some kind of chronic condition.

Bambamhoohoo · 28/10/2025 17:11

Will you really have a stressful few days after witnessing a complete stranger being sick? How do you know they even had a stomach bug?

it doesn’t seem like there was any contact or close proximity for a bug to be spread anyway.

do you have health anxiety? I’m assuming so?

ShesTheAlbatross · 28/10/2025 17:13

I think most people wouldn’t take their child to hospital for a regular vomiting bug unless they really had no choice (very severe, or underlying conditions) so there’s a decent chance they were vomiting for another reason.

Incubation period probably up to about 48 hrs for a regular stomach bug.

MrsPrendergast · 28/10/2025 17:14

I'd say the child was sick for something other than a D&V bug

Original poster

Worriedmamma111 · 28/10/2025 17:17

I’m particularly worried because my child is only 1 , I’m pregnant and also because we have some plans early next week that I would hate to cancel. I overheard his parent saying he’s been sick non stop all morning so it could definitely be just a a regular stomach bug. They said it was so much that they thought best to bring him in. I was also questioning why would someone bring a vomiting child to a&e after a few hours of vomiting in the absence of other red flag symptoms.

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Original poster

Worriedmamma111 · 28/10/2025 17:18

Oh actually I think I heard them also saying that he might have had blood in the vomit but that they can’t be sure that’s not just red food

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Worriedmamma111 · 28/10/2025 17:19

I feel a little better after reading the messages saying it’s unlikely, thank you

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ComfortFoodCafe · 28/10/2025 17:47

Quite unlikely its a bug. My son was throwing up non stop in a&e, he was in dka.

JanetRobertaSnakehole · 28/10/2025 19:57

It's possible it wasn't a stomach bug. It's also possible it was, as many children attend A&E with gastro (especially noro or rotavirus) if they can't keep any fluids down.

Either way, I think it's very unlikely that you would have caught anything if the child wasn't sick while you were there. Noro can be spread through aerosol droplets but this would only be if the vomiting occured with you in the room. Most forms of gastroenteritis are spread through the fecal-oral route, and if you washed hands (and changed clothes etc) before any hands went in the mouth, it's unlikely you would have ingested any virus particles.

If it is a virus, in terms of incubation period, it could be up to 10 days depending on type of virus. Noro is the most violent and most contagious, but has the shortest incubation period of 48 hours. Rota is up to 72h I believe, but if your baby had the jab, you are both unlikely to catch this (as you probably would have had it during childhood). Other viruses such as adenoviruses have a longer incubation period but are less contagious overall.

Do you have emetophobia by any chance?

Original poster

Worriedmamma111 · 28/10/2025 20:09

JanetRobertaSnakehole · 28/10/2025 19:57

It's possible it wasn't a stomach bug. It's also possible it was, as many children attend A&E with gastro (especially noro or rotavirus) if they can't keep any fluids down.

Either way, I think it's very unlikely that you would have caught anything if the child wasn't sick while you were there. Noro can be spread through aerosol droplets but this would only be if the vomiting occured with you in the room. Most forms of gastroenteritis are spread through the fecal-oral route, and if you washed hands (and changed clothes etc) before any hands went in the mouth, it's unlikely you would have ingested any virus particles.

If it is a virus, in terms of incubation period, it could be up to 10 days depending on type of virus. Noro is the most violent and most contagious, but has the shortest incubation period of 48 hours. Rota is up to 72h I believe, but if your baby had the jab, you are both unlikely to catch this (as you probably would have had it during childhood). Other viruses such as adenoviruses have a longer incubation period but are less contagious overall.

Do you have emetophobia by any chance?

Thank you. I don’t think have a phobia but the thought of the whole household vomiting does fill me with dread (but I’m sure its the same for most people).I’m also currently heavily pregnant.

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JanetRobertaSnakehole · 28/10/2025 21:12

Totally get that. We've had two sickness bugs in the house in the last month since my son started nursery. If it makes you feel better, I was in the room while he was vomiting and I still didn't catch it, by practicing good hand hygiene and changing clothing as well (plus cleaning with bleach).

I am emetophobic, so I worry about sickness bugs A LOT, but I wouldn't be overly worried in your situation.

JudgeBread · 28/10/2025 21:17

I mean if the child had potential blood in their vomit the parents were absolutely right to be there so not sure what you mean by questioning what they were doing there in the first place.

Presumably you were also there for good reason so unfortunately proximity to other sick people is just a reality of the necessity of being in hospital. That said unless your child was licking the sick child they'll be unlikely to have caught anything from just being in the same room.

Original poster

Worriedmamma111 · 01/11/2025 13:05

JanetRobertaSnakehole · 28/10/2025 21:12

Totally get that. We've had two sickness bugs in the house in the last month since my son started nursery. If it makes you feel better, I was in the room while he was vomiting and I still didn't catch it, by practicing good hand hygiene and changing clothing as well (plus cleaning with bleach).

I am emetophobic, so I worry about sickness bugs A LOT, but I wouldn't be overly worried in your situation.

Sorry you had 2 sickness bugs, I remember with my eldest nursery days and having 2 back to back sickness bugs too, awful! I’m happy to report that we’ve not caught it so far so hopefully we are in the clear (I hope I’ve not jinxed it now 😬).

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tinyspiny · 01/11/2025 13:16

Very unlikely , how do you think the hospital staff manage to not keep catching things ?

Original poster

Worriedmamma111 · 01/11/2025 13:29

tinyspiny · 01/11/2025 13:16

Very unlikely , how do you think the hospital staff manage to not keep catching things ?

I think they do catch things sometimes, don’t they?

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tinyspiny · 01/11/2025 14:55

@Worriedmamma111 i was a nurse for over 30 yrs , never caught anything from work and I worked nights on wards that had Noro and cdiff at various times .