The effectiveness of rotavirus vaccine and its impact on demographic characteristics for children in Babylon city, Iraq

Abstract

Gastroenteritis caused by rotavirus infection is one of the major healthcare problem affecting millions of children all over the world. WHO has recommended vaccine against rotavirus to be involved in the national immunisation programmes. In Iraq, rotavirus vaccine has been started since 2012 and in the current study, we aimed to estimate the effectiveness of rotavirus vaccine in Babylon city, Iraq. Faecal samples were obtained from children presented with diarrhoea during the period beginning in October 2016 until August 2017. The age range was 6-60 months and history of rotavirus vaccine was checked. Latex test for detection of Rotavirus analysed specimens. We examined 349 children with diarrhoea; the rotavirus antigen was detected in 169 faecal specimens from children with diarrhoea (48%). For those who are infected with rotavirus antigen, 44 (26%) were previously vaccinated against rotavirus and 125 (74%) were not. These results indicated that children who did not receive rotavirus vaccination have 4.679 folds increased the risk of having positive rotavirus antigen infected diarrhoea. Furthermore, low percentages of vaccinated children with positive rotavirus antigens detected in their stool were seen in most age groups except for those between 25–36 months with no gender differences. Additionally, more percentages were in the urban area and artificial feedings. The effectiveness of rotavirus vaccine, in the present study, has been confirmed in reducing the burden of rotavirus gastroenteritis in young children in Babylon city, Iraq. However, huge effort needs to be done in order to have more children received rotavirus vaccine.