The Changes in the Outbreak of Rotavirus Gastroenteritis in Children after Introduction of Rotavirus Vaccines: A Retrospective Study at a Tertiary Hospital.

Purpose: This study aimed to examine the changes in the outbreak of acute gastroenteritis, rotavirus gastroenteritis after the introduction of the rotavirus vaccine in Korea. Methods: The current study investigated the number of inpatients in the pediatric ward of Inje University Sanggye Paik Hospital during the periods of 2005-2006 and 2011-2012. A retrospective analysis was conducted on the medical records of 2,840 patients <5 years of age who were hospitalized at Inje University Sanggye Paik Hospital in these time periods. Results: When we compared 2 separate sets of data from before (2005-2006) and after (2011-2012) vaccine introduction, there were statistically significant decreases in the number of patients who were hospitalized for acute gastroenteritis across all of the groups of patients <5 years of age except those <2 months of age. The number of patients with rotavirus gastroenteritis in all age groups declined except for children <2 months of age and those 2-5 months of age. Conclusion: These results show that after the introduction of a rotavirus vaccine in Korea, the incidence of rotavirus gas- troenteritis decreased in 6-59-month-old patients hospitalized for acute gastroenteritis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]