Manual for the surveillance of vaccine-preventable diseases

Chapter 13 of: Manual for the surveillance of vaccine-preventable diseases. 5th edition, 2011.Rotavirus is the most common cause of severe gastroenteritis in infants and young children worldwide. Nearly every US child who is not vaccinated against rotavirus as an infant is expected to be infected with rotavirus within the first years of life, and the majority will have symptomatic gastroenteritis. The clinical spectrum of rotavirus illness ranges from mild, watery diarrhea of limited duration to severe diarrhea with vomiting and fever that can result in dehydration with shock, electrolyte imbalance, and death. Following an incubation period of 1\u20133 days, the illness often begins abruptly, and vomiting often precedes the onset of diarrhea. Gastrointestinal symptoms generally resolve in 3\u20137 days. Up to one-third of patients have a temperature of >102\ub0F (>39\ub0C). Severe, dehydrating rotavirus infection occurs primarily among unvaccinated children aged 3\u201335 months.chpt13-rotavirus.pdf2011677