Rotavirus is a contagious infection common in infants and children. The condition most commonly causes diarrhea and dehydration.
Medically reviewed by Mae Charisse Antalan, MD · General Practitioner
Rotavirus is a contagious infection common in infants and children. The condition most commonly causes diarrhea and dehydration.
In most cases, diarrhea and dehydration caused by the condition can be treated at home. But if your baby experiences chronic loose bowel movements or dehydration, it is advised to seek immediate medical help.
Looking at the effects on infants, the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends to include rotavirus vaccines in all national immunisation programmes. WHO considers this vaccine a priority in sub-Saharan Africa, South and Southeast Asian countries.
The WHO recommends the first dose of rotavirus vaccine to be administered as soon as the baby completes six weeks of age along with DTP vaccination.
Ensure your child gets vaccinated as severe dehydration or diarrhea from this virus can be life-threatening.
Currently, there are two types of rotavirus vaccines available for infants such as:
Ensure your child receives all the doses of rotavirus vaccine before he/she turns 8 months old. Both vaccines are given orally.
As children and infants are more likely to experience symptoms, parents can notice the change in their child’s behavior within a day or two. The symptoms can develop within two days after being exposed to this virus.
As said earlier, rotavirus can cause diarrhea and severe loose bowel movements—this is a common and major symptom. Other symptoms your child may experience are as follows:
Dehydration is a major concern in children. Therefore, ensure your child drinks plenty of water to cover up the loss of fluid and electrolytes. Below are the symptoms of dehydration that your child might experience due to this harmful virus:
The rotavirus belongs to Reoviridae – a family of viruses that causes respiratory and stomach illnesses.
Commonly, this virus is spread through people’s stool. If your child gets the particles of this virus in his/her mouth, it can make your child sick. This can happen when:
This harmful virus spreads easily in babies and young children. Therefore, ensure you, your family members and caregivers take care of the child properly and prevent him/her from coming in contact with any things that may lead to the condition.
Rotavirus is a virus that spreads easily and causes gastroenteritis – inflammation of intestines and stomach.
Compared to adults, infants and young kids are at higher risk of getting infected by this virus. If juniors experience severe dehydration, they might need to be hospitalized for a few days. Ensure you do not ignore the treatment of rotavirus as the virus can cause early death.
Ensure you protect your child from this virus. Get rotavirus vaccination as and when designated.
Although this virus can affect people at any age, people who are at risk of this infection are:
Ensure you visit the doctor’s clinic if there is no change in your child’s condition. Your doctor or a pediatrician will perform a physical examination and recommend a stool test to detect rotavirus.
Enzyme immunoassay can detect the virus during the stool analysis.
According to the test results, your doctor or pediatrician will suggest suitable treatment or home remedies.
There are no specific treatments or medicines that can treat rotavirus at once. However, you can treat the major symptoms of this virus – diarrhea and dehydration. Follow these few tips to treat dehydration and diarrhea:
Ensure you visit the doctor’s clinic immediately if your child experiences:
Encourage your child to rest as much as he/she can, if your child is not well. Feed bland foods that do not contain added sugar like vegetables, yoghurt, whole-grain bread, fruits, or lean meat.
Ensure your child intakes plenty of water and fluid. Prevent them from consuming cold drinks, apple juice, soda and dairy products except for yogurt. Food that contains excess sugar can make diarrhea worse.
You can use these home remedies to treat dehydration and diarrhea caused by rotavirus. But please remember not to give juice to babies under a year old and to consult your child’s pediatrician before trying any home remedies or medication.
These home remedies can work wonders to treat severe water loss and chronic loose motions. Use them at least more than twice a day to treat such conditions. Do not forget to seek the advice of your child’s pediatrician before giving any home remedies or medication to your child.
Learn more about Parenting here.
Disclaimer
Hello Health Group does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
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