Rotaviruses in infants with diarrhea studied by viral RNA electrophoresis in Ankara, Turkey.

PIP: Incidence of rotavirus in children under 2 years of age, admitted to 2 children's hospitals i n Ankara, Turkey, from July 1984-June 1985 was measured using viral RNA electrophoresis in agarose gels. 375 children were selected at random from over 14,000 diarrhea admissions, and their stool specimens taken on admission were compared to those of 333 children without diarrhea. 61 (16.3%) of the diarrhea cases had detectable rotavirus, compared to 0% in controls. Bacteriologic tests for salmonella, Shigella and Campylobacter jejuni were positive for 51 (13.6%) of the diarrhea patients and 1.8% of controls. 1 child had both rotavirus and Salmonella. Rotavirus infection was highest in November- March, peaking in December. Bacterial diarrhea was prevalent in the summer. This pattern is typical of a temperate climate, although in developed countries bacterial gastroenteritis is not as prevalent. Since there are about 2340 diarrhea admissions annually for rotavirus in Ankara, from a population of 2,700,000, rotavirus vaccination seems appropriate.^ieng