Pediatria pre prax S1/2012

Rotaviral infection and primary care pediatrician practice

We investigated the laboratory-confirmed rotavirus (RV) aetiology rate in cases of acute gastroenteritis (GE) in children below 5 years of age in primary paediatric practices during the rotavirus season, together with the clinical severity of rotavirus-related cases of gastroenteritis diagnosed in primary practice. The data were collected from 433 children, of which 9.7% were vaccinated. A significantly lower proportion of RGVE was reported in vaccinated children (9.5% vs 34.5%, p<0,001); none of the vaccinated children was admitted to hospital due to mild clinical symptoms. Admission to hospital was recorded in 9.0% of children, significantly more children with RGVE as compared with GE of other aetiology (18.8% vs 4.5%, p<0,001). Of children who acquired RVGE in the first year of their life, one third underwent hospitalisation. When evaluating the disease severity (Clark, Vesikari) RVGE cases were significantly more severe as compared with non-rotavirus GE cases (p<0,001).

Keywords: rotavirus, gastroenteritis, hospitalization, vaccination.