rotavirus infection in children with acute diarrhea in tehran

the etiology of acute diarrhea was studied in 915 children under 5 years of age between march 1986 and august 1987, in 7 hospitals in tehran. 65 healthy children in similar age groups served as controls. rotavirus was found in 25% of the patients and 1.5% of controls with the highest detection rate occurring in the 7-24 month age group (28%) and declining beyond 25 months of age (5%). the infection rate was also high (19%) in the first 6 months of life and breast feeding was not protective. the rate of rotavirus infection was highest during the months of april and may (30% and 37% respectively) and lowest during december and january (7%).