Risk Factors Associated With Rotavirus Gastroenteritis During a Community Outbreak in Chiapas, Mexico During the Postvaccination Era

Nonsecretor Phenotype Is Associated With Less Risk of Rotavirus-Associated Acute Gastroenteritis in a Vaccinated Nicaraguan Birth Cohort

BACKGROUND

Histo-blood group antigens (HBGAs) have been associated with rotavirus vaccine take; but the effect of these HBGAs on rotavirus incidence and risk remains poorly explored in vaccinated populations.

METHODS

Rotavirus-associated acute gastroenteritis (AGE) was assessed in 444 Nicaraguan children followed from birth until 3 years of age. AGE episodes were tested for rotavirus by reverse-transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction, and saliva or blood was used to determine HBGA phenotypes. Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate the relative hazard of rotavirus AGE by HBGA phenotypes.

RESULTS

Rotavirus was detected in 109 (7%) stool samples from 1689 AGE episodes over 36 months of observation between June 2017 and July 2021. Forty-six samples were successfully genotyped. Of these, 15 (35%) were rotavirus vaccine strain G1P[8], followed by G8P[8] or G8P[nt] (11 [24%]) and equine-like G3P[8] (11 [24%]). The overall incidence of rotavirus-associated AGE was 9.2 per 100 child-years, and was significantly higher in secretor than nonsecretor children (9.8 vs 3.5/100 child-years, P = .002).

CONCLUSIONS

The nonsecretor phenotype was associated with decreased risk of clinical rotavirus vaccine failure in a vaccinated Nicaraguan birth cohort. These results show the importance of secretor status on rotavirus risk, even in vaccinated children.

Prevalence of rotavirus infection among children under five years at a tertiary institution in Nigeria

Background and objectives: Rotavirus is a significant cause of nonbacterial diarrhea, especially in infants and young children worldwide. This study evaluated the pattern of rotavirus infection in children under five years presenting with acute diarrhea in Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada, Nigeria. Methodology: It was a cross-sectional descriptive study to describe the prevalence of rotavirus infection among children. The study enrolled children 1 to 59 months old with acute diarrhea attending General Paediatric Outpatient clinic and hospitalized in the Emergency Paediatric Unit of University of Abuja Teaching Hospital (UATH), Gwagwalada, Nigeria. Rotavirus antigen was detected in the stool by qualitative enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Data were analyzed using IBM-SPSS version 25.0. Results: The study comprised of 414 diarrhoeal children aged 1–59 months, of which 226 (54.6%) were male and the mean age was 12.1 months. The overall rate of rotavirus infection was 43.0% (178/ 414). The rotavirus infection was slightly higher among females than in males (46.8% vs 39.8%; p=0.153). Children from upper and middle social classes were at 1.95 [CI=1.17–3.26] and 3.08[CI=1.77–5.34] times higher risks of rotavirus induced diarrhea than the children from the lower social class (p<0.005). Children whose mothers had post-secondary education were three times more at risk of rotavirus diarrhea [OR=3.70; CI=1.46–9.36] than those with primary or no formal education (p<0.05). Children who had never been vaccinated against rotavirus were four times more likely to suffer rotavirus infection than those who had been vaccinated [OR=3.96; 95%CI=1.13–13.89, p=0.032]. Conclusion: This study found that rotavirus was an important causative agent of diarrhea in children in Gwagwalada, Abuja. Due to low rotavirus vaccination status in children, rotavirus screening tests are necessary for children with acute diarrheal disease. J Med Sci. 2022; 16(2): 010. DOI: https://doi.org/10.55010/imcjms.16.020 *Correspondence: Felix Olaniyi Sanni, Department of Public Health, Fescosof Data Solutions, Ogun, Nigeria. Email: fescosofanalysis@gmail.com

Food products as potential carriers of SARS-CoV-2

At present, humanity is confronting with a novel life-threatening challenge from the COVID-19 pandemic infectious disease caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. To date, the various transmission modes of SARS-CoV-2 have not been completely determined. Food products might be carriers for SARS-CoV-2. The COVID-19 pandemic not only can spread through the respiratory tract like SARS and MERS but also the presence of the SARS-CoV-2 RNA in feces of several patients, shows the possibility of their fecal-oral route spread. Besides, people with gastric problems, including gastric intestinal metaplasia and atrophic gastritis, may be susceptible to this kind of COVID-19 infection. Accordingly, food may act as a potential vehicle of SARS-CoV-2 due to whether carry-through or carry-over contaminations. Considering carry-over, SARS-CoV-2 spread from personnel to food products or food surfaces is feasible. Beyond that, some shreds of evidence showed that pigs and rabbits can be infected by SARS-CoV-2. Thus, viral transmission through meat products may be conceivable, indicating carry-through contamination. As the spread rate of SARS-CoV-2 is high and its stability in different environments, especially food processing surfaces, is also remarkable, it may enter foods in whether industrialized processing or the traditional one. Therefore, established precautious acts is suggested to be applied in food processing units. The present review elucidates the risk of various staple food products, including meat and meat products, dairy products, bread, fruits, vegetables, and ready-to-eat foods as potential carriers for transmission of SARS-CoV-2.

Role of healthcare practitioners in rotavirus disease awareness and vaccination - insights from a survey among caregivers

An online survey was designed to assess awareness and understanding of Rotavirus (RV) gastroenteritis (RVGE), and knowledge and attitudes towards RV vaccination in Germany, Poland, Turkey, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand. Survey participants (n = 1500) comprised parents, expectant parents and guardians of children ≤5 years of age who have sole or joint responsibility for health and well-being decisions relating to their child, who were recruited from an online panel and provided their consent for study participation. Participants from most countries had a high level of awareness of RV infections (mean: 82%) and of those aware of RV, a mean of 61% participants were aware that RV was the most common cause of GE, however the majority (mean: 59%) were unaware that nearly every child would be infected with RVGE by the age of 5 years. Healthcare professional (HCP) recommendation was identified as the key driver for participants seeking vaccination (48%–75% of participants stated this reason, with results differing by country) followed by availability of RV vaccine in the national immunization program. Despite a high level of awareness of RVGE among participants, fostering knowledge regarding the difficulty of RVGE prevention, the risk of RV contraction and the associated serious consequences like dehydration is imperative to improve RV vaccination uptake. HCPs, being the primary influence on participants’ decision on vaccination, are best suited to bridge existing knowledge gaps and recommend parents to vaccinate their children against RVGE.

Prevalence and genotypes of Rotavirus among children under 5 years presenting with diarrhoea in Moshi, Tanzania: a hospital based cross sectional study

Background

Diarrhoea is a main cause of morbidity and mortality in children under 5 responsible for approximately four billion cases and 1.1 million deaths annually. In developing countries, it causes two million deaths each year. The major causative organism responsible is Rotavirus which is responsible for one-third of hospitalizations with approximately 40% mortality.

Results

The prevalence of Rotavirus infection was 26.4% (73/277). The predominant strain of Rotavirus found was G1 21/73 (53.8%), followed by G8 9/73 (23.1%), G12 5/73 (12.8%), G9 3/73(7.7%) and G4 1/73 (2.6%). All serotypes identified were in children who had completed Rotavirus vaccination except for one who had G8 in whom the vaccine was introduced after they had completed immunizations.

Conclusion

The overall prevalence of rotavirus has reduced from 33.2% in 2009 to 26.4% in 2016. We have found G1 to be the predominant serotype as well as other circulating serotypes namely G4, G8, G9 and G12. Despite a reduction in prevalence, there is a need for further rotavirus surveillance in the region.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s13104-017-2883-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Association between Severe Dehydration in Rotavirus Diarrhea and Exclusive Breastfeeding among Infants at Dr. Hasan Sadikin General Hospital, Bandung, Indonesia

Background. Rotavirus is the leading cause of severe acute diarrhea in children. Infants who are exclusively breastfed develop fewer infections and have less severe illnesses. This study aimed to determine association between severe dehydration in rotavirus diarrhea and exclusive breastfeeding. Methods. This is a cross-sectional study in infants ≤ 6 months old with acute diarrhea in Dr. Hasan Sadikin Hospital, Bandung, Indonesia. Results. From 134 infants ≤ 6 months old with acute diarrhea enrolled from April 2009 to December 2012, there were 88 (65.6%) boys and 46 (34.4%) girls in this study. Rotavirus was detected in 60 (44.8 %), 32 (53.3%) of whom were exclusively breastfed. From rotavirus positive subjects, severe dehydration occurred in 4 (12.6%) exclusively breastfed infants and 6 (21.5%) not exclusively breastfed infants. No significant association was found between severe dehydration and exclusive breastfeeding (p = 0.491) in rotavirus diarrhea. Conclusions. In rotavirus diarrhea, there was no significant association between exclusive breastfeeding and severe dehydration.