Clinical and Epidemiologic Features of Severe Viral Gastroenteritis in Children

The global epidemiological landscape of childhood acute gastroenteritis (AGE) is changing after the introduction of 2 effective rotavirus vaccines in 2006. A comprehensive evaluation for viral etiology of childhood AGE in Taiwan, where rotavirus vaccination was provided by the private sector since 2006, is lacking.From 2009 to 2011, children younger than 5 years of age with AGE who were hospitalized at 3 sentinel hospitals were enrolled in this surveillance study. Stool specimens were tested for rotavirus, norovirus, enteric adenovirus, and astrovirus. The epidemiologic and clinical information was collected by questionnaire-based interviews and chart reviews.Viral agents were detected in 1055 (37.5%) of 2810 subjects, with rotavirus (21.2%) being the leading cause of disease, followed by norovirus (14.9%), enteric adenovirus (3.74%), astrovirus (2.10%), and a mixture of at least 2 of 4 above-mentioned viruses (4.06%). The majority (56%) of the viral AGE occurred in children <2 years of age. Rotavirus and norovirus were detected more frequently in cool seasons (P < 0.0001 for both), whereas no seasonal variation was observed for adenovirus and astrovirus. Adult households with diarrhea and a Vesikari score >10 were independent factors respectively associated with an increased risk of norovirus (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 9.034, P = 0.0003) and rotavirus (aOR, 3.284, P < 0.0001) infections. Rotavirus immunization and female gender were protective factors against rotavirus (aOR, 0.198, P < 0.0001) and astrovirus (aOR, 0.382, P = 0.0299) infections, respectively.Rotavirus and norovirus are the 2 most important viral agents of childhood AGE in Taiwan with partial rotavirus immunization. In addition, different enteric viruses are associated with distinct epidemiologic and clinical features.