title: [Epidemiological and clinical study of diarrhea by rotavirus in children <5 years of age attended in medical centers of the Miranda State, Venezuela].
abstract: To have a better knowledge of the epidemiological and clinical aspects of rotavirus (RV) infection treated at out-patient clinics, we carried out a study in five centers (one hospital type I, and four out-patient clinics) of Miranda state, between february 2006 and january 2007. We evaluated 194 children <5 years old with acute diarrhea and analyzed the following characteristics: gender, age, socioeconomic condition, breastfeeding, nutritional status, clinical characteristics, rotavirus diagnosis and typing by Enzyme Linked immuno Sorbent Asssay (EISA) and G typing by RT-PCR, respectively. The population presented the following characteristics: 53% males; mean age, 17.6 +/- 14.05 months; 68% belonged to worker and marginal class (Graffar 4 and 5); 59% were breast-fed during their first year of life; 13% were malnourished; 40% were dehydrated and 19% were infected with RV. RV infection was significantly and more frequently associated with vomiting (94%, P<0.0001) and malnourishment (30%, P=0.0010) than the episodes negative for rotavirus. In dehydrated cases, significantly greater malnourishment (21%, P=0.0232) and RV (28%, P=0.0407). We found significant differences between the hospital and out-patient clinics, in terms of Graffar 4 and 5 (90% vs .53%, P<0.0001), malnourished (23% vs. 6%, P=0.006), dehydration (63% vs 24%, P<0.0001) and RV (27% vs. 13%, P=0.027). Fourteen samples RV positive were genotyped and the G types were 29% G1, 21% G3 and 14% G4 types. This study suggests that RV cause severe diarrhea associated to malnutrition and poverty and significantly affect the population older than one year of age in the region studied.
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Enfermedades Entéricas, Cardiológico Infantil Dr. Gilberto Rodríguez Ochoa, Caracas Venezuela. rosagoma@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Rosabel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: González
authors.forename: Hans
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Salas-Maronsky
authors.forename: Erick
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Balebona
authors.forename: José Ramón
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Martinez
authors.forename: Noris
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Serrano
authors.forename: Irene
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pérez-Schael
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology; D003968:Diarrhea, Infantile / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D012401:Rotavirus / Q000235:genetics; D012400:Rotavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014687:Venezuela / Q000453:epidemiology