Rotavirus fecal antigen retrieval in infantile intussusception

This study was designed to assess the plausibility of an association between natural rotavirus infection and intussusception. It was conducted on 21 infants suffering from acute gastroenteritis (GE) complicated by intussusception who were compared to another 40 age- and sex-matched infants suffering from acute GE characterized by watery nonmucoid diarrhea without surgical complications. All enrolled patients were subjected to detailed history documentation, thorough clinical examination and laboratory investigations, complete stool analysis, and detection of rotavirus antigen in stools using the ELISA technique. Plain abdominal X-ray and ultrasound were also performed. The results of this study revealed 24 positive cases for rotavirus antigen in the stools of the acute uncomplicated GE patients (60.0%), while there were only ten positive cases in the intussusception group (47.6%). No significant difference in severity was detected between the two groups studied, especially in terms of signs of dehydration and need for IV fluids (p > 0.05). Most of the rotavirus positive cases among the intussusception group presented either in February or December (p < 0.05) with no significant seasonal pattern among the acute GE group (p > 0.05). In conclusion, rotavirus antigen retrieval from stools of GE patients complicated with intussusception was not statistically different from those detected among acute uncomplicated GE. Additionally, there was no association between seasonality or severity of rotavirus positive cases in acute GE patients and those with intussusception. It is thus prudent to say that wild rotavirus infection in GE patients does not carry an extra risk for the occurrence of intussusception.