Current status of rotavirus vaccines.

BACKGROUND Rotaviruses remain the major cause of childhood diarrheal disease worldwide and of diarrheal deaths of infants and children in developing countries. The huge burden of childhood rotavirus-related diarrhea in the world continues to drive the remarkable pace of vaccine development. DATA SOURCES Research articles were searched using terms "rotavirus" and "rotavirus vaccine" in MEDLINE and PubMed. Articles not published in the English language, articles without abstracts, and opinion articles were excluded from the review. After preliminary screening, all articles were reviewed and synthesized to provide an overview of current vaccines and vaccination programs. RESULTS In this review of the global rotavirus vaccines and vaccination programs, the principles of rotavirus vaccine development and the efficacy of the currently licensed vaccines from both developed and developing countries were summarized. CONCLUSIONS Rotavirus is a common cause of diarrhea in children in both developed and developing countries. Rotavirus vaccination is a cost-effective measure to prevent rotavirus diarrhea.