Hospital-based surveillance and molecular epidemiology of rotavirus infection in Taiwan, 2005-2007.
To determine the distribution of rotavirus strains and facilitate vaccine policy decisions in Taiwan, active hospital-based gastroenteritis surveillance was conducted in three sentinel hospitals. From 1 January 2005 to 31 December 2007, a total of 3435 children less than 5 years old with gastroenteritis were enrolled. The presence of rotavirus was documented by enzyme immunoassay (EIA), and the G and P genotypes were determined by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and sequencing methods. Results confirmed that 856 (25%) of these gastroenteritis admissions were EIA-positive for rotavirus and 448 (52%) of the rotavirus positive admissions were less than 2 years old. The most prevalent rotavirus genotypes were G1P[8] (40%), followed by strains G3P[8] (27%), and G9P[8] (17%). These data will help inform decisions as to whether rotavirus vaccine should be considered for inclusion into Taiwan's National Immunisation Programme.
Wu
F T
FT
Research and Diagnostic Center, Centers for Disease Control, Department of Health, 161 Kunyang Street, Nan Kang District, Taipei 115, Taiwan.
Liang
S Y
SY
Tsao
K C
KC
Huang
C G
CG
Lin
C Y
CY
Lin
J S
JS
Su
C Y
CY
Eng
H L
HL
Yang
J Y
JY
Chen
P J
PJ
Yang
C F
CF
D017677:Age Distribution; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology; D005260:Female; D005759:Gastroenteritis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology; D005838:Genotype; D006761:Hospitals / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D017720:Molecular Epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D012401:Rotavirus / Q000235:genetics; D012400:Rotavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012621:Seasons; D018571:Sentinel Surveillance; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology