Stomach virus hits USC campus

About 75 USC students are being treated in a campus outbreak of a highly contagious gastrointestinal virus.

In an e-mail and text message sent early Saturday, school officials asked sick students to watch that evening’s football game against the Oregon Ducks from home in order to contain the outbreak. They also advised students to avoid socializing and to drink plenty of fluids.

The university’s health clinic reported patients complaining of vomiting, stomach cramps and diarrhea. The suspected virus can be contagious for several days after a person recovers, the advisory said.

The notification said at least 30 students living in or near the University Park Campus had been taken to medical facilities in the last day.

Although school officials stopped short of recommending a full-scale quarantine, they asked anyone on campus with symptoms of the virus to report to the USC University Park Student Health Center.