This year the highest on record are the cases of norovirus, the so-called winter vomiting bug, officials have stated.

The number of laboratory-confirmed cases in early March was 7,300, nearly 50 per cent more than in the same period in 2009 despite falling since a peak in January.

Reports say that the rise might be due to better reporting. Experts have also stated that the long and cold winter may also have contributed.

Determining the exact number of cases was difficult as people did not go to a doctor, the HPA said. In the first three weeks of February, there were 152 ward closures or restrictions to admissions in hospital because of norovirus.

Hugh Pennington, Emeritus Professor of Bacteriology at the University of Aberdeen, said, “It was a bit of a puzzle why the figures were so high this year. This virus is good at transmitting from person to person, and it might have become even better at getting about. If so, this would have produced many more cases, although it doesn’t mean each case is any more serious.”