Abstract:
The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency of rotavirus infection
among children with diarrhea in Omdurman Pediatric Hospital during the period
from January to April 2011. Stool specimens from 92 children less than 5 years
of age suffering from diarrhea were tested for the presence of rotavirus by
antigen detection using the solid-phase sandwich Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent
Assay. The results obtained were processed and statistically analyzed using Chi-
square test. Rotavirus antigen was detected in 23 (25%) of the patients. Most of
the positive cases (91.3%) were in children less than 3 years of age and the
infection rate decreased with the increasing age. Children
infected with rotavirus were more likely to have vomiting
(82.6%) and fairly low frequency of fever (60.9%). Out of the 23
rotavirus positive cases, 13 (30.2%) were breast-fed, 6 (25%) were
both breast and bottle-fed and 4 (16.6%) were neither breast nor bottle-fed.
When the effect of antibiotics therapy was examined, the antibiotic treated
children revealed the highest percentage of rotavirus antigen (26.9%) compared
to the non-treated children (14.3%). These findings testified that the diarrhea
among infants and children was non-bacterial and mainly due to rotavirus
infection. In conclusion, routine and proper diagnosis of rotavirus
infection in children with acute diarrhea helps to determine
appropriate
treatment,
prevents
the
unnecessary
use
of
antibiotics and minimizes the spread of the disease among
susceptible children.
