Prevalence and Genotype Distribution of Rotaviruses in Children Hospitalized with Acute Gastroenteritis

Introduction: Rotavirus is the leading cause of severe diarrhea in infants and young children. Rotavirus immunization has been effective in developed countries, where the genotype G1P[8] is the predominant Rotavirus strain. Objective: The present study was therefore undertaken to assess the Rotavirus prevalence, genotypes and to know the circulating strains in a population. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted in MOSC Medical College, Kolenchery from February 2009 to January 2011. Rotavirus was identified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test on stool specimens of hospitalized children <5 years of age. Rotavirus positive specimens were genotyped by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) at Christian Medical College, Vellore. Result: Of the 1807 stool specimens, a total of 648 (35.9%) were positive for Rotavirus by the rotaclone ELISA test. Of the 648 positive cases, G1P[8] (49.7%) was the most common strain identified by RT-PCR followed by G9P[8] (26.4%), G2P[4] (5.5%), G9P[4] (2.6%), and G12P[6] (1.3%). Conclusion: Our study provides important information on the Rotavirus genotypes prevalent in our area and also imparts light on the fact that Rotavirus accounts for a large population of diarrheal disease in hospitalized children <5 years of age.