Rotavirus Vaccine

Rotavirus is a virus that causes diarrhea, mostly in babies and young children. The diarrhea can be severe, and lead to dehydration. Vomiting and fever are also common in babies with rotavirus.
Before rotavirus vaccine, rotavirus disease was a common and serious health problem for children in the United States. Almost all children in the United States had at least one rotavirus infection before their 5th birthday.
Every year before the vaccine was available:

• more than 400,000 young children had to see a doctor for illness caused by rotavirus,
• more than 200,000 had to go to the emergency room,
• 55,000 to 70,000 had to be hospitalized, and
• 20 to 60 died.

Since the introduction of the rotavirus vaccine, hospitalizations and emergency visits for rotavirus have dropped dramatically.