Rotavirus Infections

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Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Symptoms
• Diagnosis and Tests
• Prevention and Risk Factors
• Treatments and Therapies

Learn More

• Related Issues
• Specifics

See, Play and Learn

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Research

• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Find an Expert

For You

• Children
• Patient Handouts

Summary

Rotavirus is a virus that causes gastroenteritis. Symptoms include severe diarrhea, vomiting, fever, and dehydration. Almost all children in the U.S. are likely to be infected with rotavirus before their 5th birthday.

Infections happen most often in the winter and spring. It is very easy for children with the virus to spread it to other children and sometimes to adults. Once a child gets the virus, it takes about two days to become sick. Vomiting and diarrhea may last from three to eight days.

There is no medicine to treat it. To prevent dehydration, have your child drink plenty of liquids. Your health care provider may recommend oral rehydration drinks. Some children need to go to the hospital for IV fluids. Two vaccines against rotavirus infections are available.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Start Here

• Frequently Asked Questions about Rotavirus (National Foundation for Infectious Diseases)
• Rotavirus (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Vaccine (Drops) for Rotavirus (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Symptoms

• Rotavirus Symptoms (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish

Diagnosis and Tests

• Stool Tests (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Prevention and Risk Factors

• Rotavirus Vaccine: What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF Also in Spanish

Treatments and Therapies

• Gastroenteritis: First Aid (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
• Rotavirus Treatment (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish
• What is the Best Way to Treat Diarrhea? (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Related Issues

• Safety Information for Rotavirus Vaccines (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Stomach Flu: How Long Am I Contagious? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

Specifics

• Viral Gastroenteritis (Stomach Flu) (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Rotavirus Infections (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: The indelible toll of enteric pathogens: Prevalence, clinical characterization, and seasonal...
• Article: RT-PCR-based assessment of the SD Bioline Rota/Adeno Antigen-based test in infants...
• Article: Mucosal and systemic neutralizing antibodies to norovirus induced in infant mice...
• Rotavirus Infections -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Also in Spanish
• National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Children

• Rotavirus (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Rotavirus Vaccines (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

• Rotavirus antigen test (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Rotavirus Vaccine: What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF Also in Spanish