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African rotavirus surveillance network: a brief overview
Jason M Mwenda1, Jacqueline E Tate, Umesh D Parashar
1From the *World Health Organization, Regional Office for Africa, Brazzaville, Republic of Congo; †National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, CDC, Atlanta, GA; and ‡World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland.
The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal
|December 18, 2013
Summary
Reliable rotavirus disease burden data is crucial for African countries to inform decisions on introducing new rotavirus vaccines. Sentinel surveillance platforms are generating country-specific evidence for policy-making in diarrhea control.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Infectious Diseases
- Vaccinology
Background:
- Rotavirus gastroenteritis is a major cause of childhood diarrhea globally.
- New rotavirus vaccines are becoming available, necessitating data on disease burden for informed introduction.
- Effective diarrhea control strategies require accurate, country-specific epidemiological data.
Purpose of the Study:
- To establish and utilize sentinel surveillance systems across African nations.
- To generate reliable data on the burden of rotavirus diarrhea in children under 5 years.
- To support evidence-based decision-making for rotavirus vaccine introduction and national immunization programs.
Main Methods:
- Implementing standardized guidelines for rotavirus diarrhea surveillance.
- Focusing surveillance on children under 5 years of age.
- Utilizing World Health Organization supported platforms since 2006.
Main Results:
- African countries are generating high-quality, country-specific data on rotavirus gastroenteritis burden.
- Surveillance data provides evidence for the impact of rotavirus disease.
- The generated data is actively used by policymakers.
Conclusions:
- Sentinel surveillance is effective in documenting rotavirus disease burden in Africa.
- Data generated informs policy decisions on rotavirus vaccine introduction.
- This evidence supports the integration of rotavirus vaccines into national immunization programs for diarrhea control.
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