Prevalence of rotaviral diarrhoea in under-five hospitalized children in a tertiary care hospital of Eastern India

Abstract

Background: To monitor the prevalence of rotaviral diarrhoea in under-5 children (U5C) as a retrospective study in a tertiary care hospital during 1 year. Methods: Suspected stool samples were diagnosed for rotavirus by an enzyme immunoassay kit. The same stool samples were diagnosed for the detection of any secondary bacterial infection through routine microbiological diagnosis. Results and conclusions: Of the total 265 stool samples, 123 were diagnosed positive with rotaviral infection, of which, 59 (50.86%) samples were from children in the age group of 0–12 months; further, 28 (41.79%), 17 (58.52%), 14 (35.71%) and 5 (46.41%) were from age groups, 13–24, 25–36, 37–48 and 49–60 months, respectively. Cases of secondary bacteremia were with Klebsiella sp., Enterobacter sp., Escherichia coli and Shigella sp. in the stool samples in age groups as given: 14 (0–12 month), 3 (13–24 month), 2 (37–48 month) and 1 (25–36 month). Of the total 123 rotaviral positive infants, 62 patients had fever and 100 patients had vomiting; while, 57, 47 and 10 patients had ‘mild’, ‘moderate’ and ‘severe’ dehydration, respectively. Further, 34 and 89 rotaviral positive children were with malnutrition and normal nutrition, respectively; while, 19, 89 and 15 patients were hospitalized for ⩽2, 3–6, and ⩾7 days, respectively. Data sets for ‘severity of dehydration’ and ‘days of hospitalization’ were statistically significant, with Kruskal–Wallis H-test, independently. Of 142 rotaviral negative patients, 27 with bacterial diarrhoea, 6 with parasitic infections, 20 with antibiotic intolerance and 31 with lactose intolerance were recorded.

Keywords

• Enteropathogens
• Rotavirus
• Secondary bacteremia
• Under-5 children