Parents need to be more aware of Rotavirus

Many parents lack knowledge about a highly contagious common cause of viral gastroenteritis, rotavirus, that causes vomiting and diarrhea which can lead to dehydration. Dehydration can be so extreme in some children that they require hospital admission and intravenous fluid therapy. Rotavirus is transferred via the fecal-oral route between people due to poor hygiene, which is common for children and child care facilities. A survey conducted on parents found that the majority were not aware of this common cause of diarrheal illness and did not realize that their children would have most probably been infected by the time they reached kindergarten. Once informed of the severe symptoms, including projectile vomiting and frequent diarrhea, parents rated them as the worst possible symptoms their children could experience. In some cases resultant dehydration can kill the child, with almost 2 children per week dying in the U.S as a complication of rotavirus gastroenteritis. Viral gastro tends to be more prevalent in the Fall and Spring in the U.S.

Source: summary of medical news story as reported by PRNewswire

Related Disease Topics:

• Rotavirus
• Viral gastroenteritis
• Gastroenteritis
• Dehydration
• Diarrheal illness
• Rotavirus gastroenteritis
• Viral gastro

Related Symptom Topics:

• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Projectile vomiting
• Frequent diarrhea

Article Source Details

About: Parents need to be more aware of Rotavirus

Date: 31 October 2005

Source: PRNewswire

URL: http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/10-31-2005/0004203873&EDATE=

Related Medical Topics

This summary article refers to the following medical categories:

• Cause of vomiting
• Cause of diarrhea
• Cause of projectile vomiting
• Cause of frequent diarrhea
• Cause of rotavirus
• Cause of viral gastroenteritis
• Cause of gastroenteritis
• Cause of dehydration
• Cause of diarrheal illness
• Cause of rotavirus gastroenteritis
• Cause of viral gastro
• Cause of gastro
• Cause of childhood illness
• Risk and rotavirus
• Risk and viral gastroenteritis
• Risk and gastroenteritis
• Risk and dehydration
• Risk and diarrheal illness
• Risk and rotavirus gastroenteritis
• Risk and viral gastro
• Diagnosis
• Diagnosis and vomiting
• Diagnosis and diarrhea
• Diagnosis and projectile vomiting
• Diagnosis and frequent diarrhea
• Diagnosis and rotavirus
• Diagnosis and viral gastroenteritis
• Diagnosis and gastroenteritis
• Diagnosis and dehydration
• Diagnosis and diarrheal illness
• Diagnosis and rotavirus gastroenteritis
• Diagnosis and viral gastro

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