Occurrence of viral gastroenteritis in children below 5 years: A hospital-based study from Assam, India

Viral gastroenteritis is an important cause of mortality and morbidity in children under 5 years of age. Many a time, these cases go unnoticed causing immense scarcity of data on viral diarrhoea. The study aimed to determine the occurrence of viral gastroenteritis among children below 5 years and the aetiological viral agents. Stool samples were collected from patients suffering from acute gastroenteritis. Real-time polymerase chain reaction was done for detection of rotavirus, adenovirus, norovirus, astrovirus and sapovirus. Viruses were detected in 55% of children. Adenovirus was found to be the most common virus (33.7%), followed by rotavirus infection (28.7%).