MANILA, PHILIPPINES (22 October 2003) – An international conference sponsored by the Asian Rotavirus Surveillance Network (ARSN), and convened by the United States’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), today announced results of the world’s first regional surveillance of rotavirus, the most common cause of severe diarrhea in children under five. Reports from eight countries found that 40 percent to 60 percent of children hospitalized for diarrhea are infected with rotavirus—double previous estimates of about 25 percent.
“ARSN represents the first example of a regional approach to rotavirus surveillance, or to any vaccine-preventable disease,” said Dr. Roger Glass, chief of the viral gastroenteritis section, CDC. “This approach has shown that we can no longer rely on disease data that are 20 years old. Countries need current surveillance data to assess the full burden of rotavirus and to evaluate their needs for a vaccine when one becomes available.”
The ARSN is a regional collaboration of 36 hospitals in nine countries that conduct surveillance for rotavirus hospitalizations. Country-by-country reports documented the extent of rotavirus, with findings from China, Thailand, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, Malaysia, and Vietnam. In total, 33 participating hospitals tested 16,000 children 0 to 5 years old hospitalized for diarrhea. They detected rotavirus in 45 percent of stools tested. The disease was found year round, in both urban and rural settings. The reports reflect results from the first two years of the Network’s study.
“We now have a consistent snapshot of eight Asian countries reporting higher incidences of rotavirus than previously appreciated,” said Dr. Tony Nelson, a professor of pediatrics who coordinated surveillance in four Hong Kong hospitals. “These findings indicate that more children are suffering from this virus than we realized. Its toll could be significantly higher than the current worldwide estimate of 500,000 childhood deaths every year.”
-more-
Rotavirus can cause severe diarrhea and vomiting that result in life-threatening dehydration. The most serious cases require hospitalization for intravenous rehydration. Although nearly every child in the world will contract rotavirus by the age of five, children in developing countries with limited access to healthcare suffer 85 percent of rotavirus deaths. In countries such as India, one in every 250 children dies from the disease. In the United States, about 50,000 children are hospitalized each year, and about 20 children die from the infection.
“Reliable, quality healthcare for children in the developing world may be decades away,” said conference speaker John Wecker, PhD, director of the Rotavirus Vaccine Program (RVP). “On the other hand, a vaccine against rotavirus appears to be just years away and is the best hope for reducing the burden of rotavirus.” RVP is a new, three-year US$30 million project to accelerate the development and introduction of rotavirus vaccines appropriate for use in the developing world.
Experts from the public and private sectors reported on the status and directions of rotavirus vaccine development, including representatives from GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals, Merck, Inc., the Lanzhou Institute for Biological Products (China), the World Health Organization, and RVP.
Glass noted that improved sanitation and hygiene do not appear to deter rotavirus, adding urgency to vaccine development. But a lack of data on disease burden has made it difficult for countries to assess their need for a vaccine.
“Surveillance efforts such as that of the ARSN lay the basis for understanding not only disease prevalence, but also the strains that vaccines must target and the objective need of different countries for rotavirus vaccines,” Glass said.
***
The Asian Rotavirus Surveillance Network is a regional collaboration of 36 hospitals in nine countries that conduct surveillance for rotavirus hospitalizations according to a uniform protocol developed by the World Health Organization.
The mission of the Rotavirus Vaccine Program is to reduce child morbidity and mortality from diarrheal disease by accelerating the availability of rotavirus vaccines appropriate for use in developing countries. The program was established in 2003 at PATH, a nonprofit global health organization based in Seattle, and works in partnership with the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The work of the Rotavirus Vaccine Program is performed under a collaborative arrangement with the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization and has received financial support from The Vaccine Fund. For more information, please contact Evan Simpson at esimpson@path.org.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) protects people’s health and safety by preventing and controlling diseases and injuries; enhances health decisions by providing credible information on critical health issues; and promotes healthy living through strong partnerships with local, national and international organizations. For more information, visit www.cdc.gov.