Occurrence of human astrovirus associated with gastroenteritis among Congolese children in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo.

Introduction: Acute viral gastroenteritis is a major public health concern, especially among children younger than 5 years of age. The aim of this study was to determine the occurrence of human astrovirus infection in children with acute gastroenteritis.

Methods: Stool specimens were collected from 506 children under 5 years of age hospitalized with acute diarrhoea (289 male and 208 female), and human astrovirus was investigated by RT-PCR.

High prevalence of norovirus and rotavirus co-infection in children with acute gastroenteritis hospitalised in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo.

Objective: To evaluate the clinical severity of diarrhoea associated to viral co-infection in children with acute gastroenteritis.

Methods: About 461 children under five years hospitalised with acute diarrhoea (266 males and 187 females) were enrolled in the study. Using stool samples, rotavirus and adenovirus infections were investigated by ELISA, and norovirus infections by nested duplex RT-PCR.