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A Prospective Study of Acute Diarrhoea in Finnish Children from Birth to 2 1/2 Years of Age
Author(s) -
RUUSKA TARJA,
VESIKARI TIMO
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
acta pædiatrica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1651-2227
pISSN - 0803-5253
DOI - 10.1111/j.1651-2227.1991.tb11893.x
Subject(s) - medicine , rotavirus , etiology , incidence (geometry) , diarrhea , pediatrics , prospective cohort study , breast feeding , physics , optics
. To determine the incidence, clinical significance and etiology of acute diarrhoea in early childhood, a cohort of 336 children were followed from birth to the age of 24–32 (mean 26) months. More than half (55%) of the children had no diarrhoea, 26% had one episode and 19% had two or more episodes of diarrhoea during follow‐up; altogether 248 episodes of diarrhoea were detected. Rotavirus was by far the most common (26%) identified pathogen; adenoviruses were detected in 4 % and bacterial pathogens (EPEC, Salmonellae, Yersiniae) in 4% of the cases. Two thirds of the episodes remained etiologically unresolved. Rotavirus diarrhoea was significantly more severe than diarrhoea due to other causes; 75% of severe episodes of diarrhoea were associated with rotavirus. About two thirds of the infants were breast‐fed over 6 months; breast‐feeding for less than 6 months was associated with a higher incidence of rotavirus diarrhoea between 7–12 months of age but not thereafter. About three quarters of the children were cared for at home beyond 12 months of age; those at home had a lower rate of rotavirus diarrhoea than those at day‐care centers.