Background:

To determine the burden of rotavirus disease before the introduction of rotavirus vaccines.

Methods:

From February 2005 to June 2006, prospective rotavirus surveillance was conducted in Cincinnati, Ohio, and Durham, North Carolina. Children< 5 years of age presenting at hospitals and outpatient clinics with acute gastroenteritis (AGE) of< 72 hours duration were enrolled. Stool samples were first tested for rotavirus by EIA and the VP7 type was determined by RT-polymerase chain reaction for rotavirus-positive samples. Medical costs were obtained from billing or accounting data.

Results:

A total of 1998 children were enrolled, with a mean age of 16.9 months. Among 1601 (80%) patients with a stool specimen, 44% were rotavirus positive. The rotavirus detection rate was 38% for patients admitted to hospital, 60% for patients requiring a short-stay hospital visit (< 24 hour hospitalization), 49% for emergency department visits, and 37% for outpatient visits. During the rotavirus season, rotavirus accounted for 56% of all AGE cases. Only 11% of rotavirus-positive children were assigned the rotavirus-specific ICD-9-CM code and this proportion varied considerably by clinical setting. The VP7 genotypes identified were G1, 79%; G2, 14%; G3, 5%; G9, 1%; and G12, 1%. For children hospitalized with rotavirus, the estimated median direct cost was $4565, the average length of stay was 1.9 days, and parents lost 3.4 days of work. For short-stay, emergency department, and outpatient visits, the estimated median costs were $3160, $867, and $75, respectively.

Conclusions:

Before the widespread use of rotavirus vaccines in the United States, rotavirus was prevalent among children treated in hospital-based and outpatient settings and was associated with a substantial proportion of pediatric medical visits for AGE.