[Diarrheal disease caused by rotavirus in epidemic outbreaks]

Determine the epidemiological profile of outbreaks of acute diarrheal disease caused by rotavirus (RV) occurring in pediatric patients, based on a critical review of the literature published between 2000 and 2010.

A search was carried out for articles published from January 2000 to April 2010, collected by the Artemisa, EBSCO, Embase, Imbiomed, Lilacs, Ovid, PubMed, and Science Direct databases. In the studies that met the inclusion criteria, possible confounding factors were identified and risks of bias were attributed based on the number of items considered inadequate in each case. The epidemiological and microbiological characteristics of the outbreaks were described.

The sample was comprised of only 14 (10.8%) of the 129 titles identified, which accounted for 91 092 reported cases of acute diarrhea. In 5 250 of these cases, a search for rotavirus was conducted, yielding 1 711 (32.5%) positive isolations. It was observed that the RV from Group A was the causative agent in 100% of the outbreaks, while genotype G9 was documented in 50% of the articles.

Rotavirus, mainly serotype G9, was one of the principal agents responsible for outbreaks of acute diarrheal disease over the past decade. A careful outbreak study can contribute valuable information for RV disease control and prevention.