Stomach bugs are never fun — for neither parent nor child — but you can potentially ward off one of the most common causes of GI illness: rotavirus. Here's more about this contagious disease, and how the vaccine can help protect your little one.
What is rotavirus?
Rotavirus disease is an intestinal virus that is extremely contagious, spreading easily among infants and young children. The virus can cause severe watery diarrhea, vomiting, fever and abdominal pain. Children who get rotavirus disease can become dehydrated and may need to be hospitalized.
Children are most likely to get rotavirus disease in the winter and spring; it tends to start in the Southwest in December and move to the Northeast by April to May, though kids can catch it at any time of the year.
Symptoms include severe watery diarrhea, vomiting, fever and abdominal pain. The vomiting and diarrhea can last three to eight days. Little ones with rotavirus disease may also have a loss of appetite and dehydration, which can be especially dangerous for infants and young children.
Adults who get rotavirus disease tend to have milder symptoms.
What is the rotavirus vaccine?
There are two different rotavirus vaccines. Both are given by putting vaccine drops in an infant's mouth.
Your baby will get two (Rotarix) or three (RotaTeq) oral doses, depending on the type of rotavirus vaccine your doctor uses, at 2, 4 and potentially 6 months of age. Your child should get the first dose of rotavirus vaccine before 15 weeks of age and the last by 8 months.
If your little one misses a dose or starts the series later, he should still get the vaccine. Your pediatrician will recommend the right number of doses and the intervals between them depending on his age.
Infants diagnosed with severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) or a history of intussusception (a serious intenstiinal condition) should not get the rotavirus vaccine.
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Why is the rotavirus vaccine important?
Before the rotavirus vaccine was available, nearly all children got at least one rotavirus disease infection by age 5 and the virus led to more than 400,000 doctor visits, 55,000 to 70,000 hospitalizations, and 20 to 60 deaths among young children each year in the U.S.
Since the vaccine was introduced, hospitalizations and emergency visits for rotavirus disease have dropped dramatically.
Learn more about childhood immunizations.
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