Burden of childhood rotavirus disease on health systems in the United States.

BACKGROUND

To determine the burden of rotavirus disease before the introduction of rotavirus vaccines.

METHODS

From February 2005 to June 2006, prospective rotavirus surveillance was conducted in Cincinnati, Ohio, and Durham, North Carolina. Children < 5 years of age presenting at hospitals and outpatient clinics with acute gastroenteritis (AGE) of < 72 hours duration were enrolled. Stool samples were first tested for rotavirus by EIA and the VP7 type was determined by RT-polymerase chain reaction for rotavirus-positive samples. Medical costs were obtained from billing or accounting data.

RESULTS

A total of 1998 children were enrolled, with a mean age of 16.9 months. Among 1601 (80%) patients with a stool specimen, 44% were rotavirus positive. The rotavirus detection rate was 38% for patients admitted to hospital, 60% for patients requiring a short-stay hospital visit (< 24 hour hospitalization), 49% for emergency department visits, and 37% for outpatient visits. During the rotavirus season, rotavirus accounted for 56% of all AGE cases. Only 11% of rotavirus-positive children were assigned the rotavirus-specific ICD-9-CM code and this proportion varied considerably by clinical setting. The VP7 genotypes identified were G1, 79%; G2, 14%; G3, 5%; G9, 1%; and G12, 1%. For children hospitalized with rotavirus, the estimated median direct cost was $4565, the average length of stay was 1.9 days, and parents lost 3.4 days of work. For short-stay, emergency department, and outpatient visits, the estimated median costs were $3160, $867, and $75, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Before the widespread use of rotavirus vaccines in the United States, rotavirus was prevalent among children treated in hospital-based and outpatient settings and was associated with a substantial proportion of pediatric medical visits for AGE.