Prospective hospital-based surveillance to estimate the burden of rotavirus gastroenteritis in children less than five years in Bhubaneswar

Background: Burden of severe rotavirus illness and deaths falls heavily upon children in the less developed countries of the world. Limited data on rotavirus disease burden and rotavirus strains is available in India. The study was done as a part of a multicentric trial to understand the temporal and regional strain diversity of rotavirus in Odisha. Objectives: 1. To estimate the burden of gastroenteritis attributable to rotavirus among under five hospitalized children. 2. To grade the severity of the diarrhea and assess the epidemiologic correlates. Methods: Study center was one of the 12 hospital sites in India selected for the hospital-based surveillance among children aged less than five years who presented to hospital with acute gastroenteritis and required hospitalization. Fecal sample was collected from every fifth child and sent for detection of rotavirus using commercial enzyme immunoassay. Strain testing was done at an accredited lab using reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction. Results: 250 samples were collected of which 58 (23.2%) tested positive for rotavirus. Highest rate of hospitalization was seen in 12-23 months i.e. 41%, more in males and infection was highest in winter months. 59% of the positive infections were of G9 genotype. Conclusion: The study reinforces the substantial health burden of rotavirus acute gastroenteritis hospitalization among Indian children. Copyright (C) 2014, INDIACLEN. Publishing Services by Reed Elsevier India Pvt Ltd. All rights reserved.