Changes in vaccine coverage and incidence of acute gastroenteritis and severe rotavirus gastroenteritis in children <5 years in Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture, Japan.

Rotavirus (RV) vaccines were first introduced in 2011 and adopted for universal vaccination in 2020 in Japan. However, the effectiveness of RV vaccines after being adopted for universal vaccination in 2020 has not been reported. Because of the easy accessibility of clinics in Japan, many children are not usually hospitalized for RV gastroenteritis (RVGE).

Occurrence of severe rotavirus gastroenteritis in children younger than three years of age before and after the introduction of rotavirus vaccine: a prospective observational study in four pediatric clinics in Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture, Japan.

In Japan, rotavirus (RV) vaccines have already been introduced but not used for universal vaccination as of 2018. Therefore, we identified cases of severe rotavirus gastroenteritis (RVGE) in children younger than three years of age and investigated the occurrence of infection before and after the introduction of RV vaccines. An ecological study through prospective surveillance was conducted in four pediatric clinics in Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture, Japan, during the 2011 to 2018 RVGE epidemic seasons.

The occurrence of severe rotavirus gastroenteritis in children under 3 years of age before and after the introduction of rotavirus vaccine: a prospective observational study in three pediatric clinics in Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture, Japan.

The occurrence of severe rotavirus gastroenteritis (RVGE) in children under 3 years of age before and after the introduction of rotavirus vaccine was prospectively surveyed in three pediatric clinics in Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture, Japan, during the 2011 and 2012 RVGE epidemic seasons. In this observational study, a significantly lower occurrence of severe RVGE among severe gastroenteritis cases was observed in 2012. The incidence rate of severe RVGE among outpatients in 2012 was significantly lower than that in 2011.