A 2-YEAR LONGITUDINAL-STUDY ON THE ETIOLOGY OF ACUTE DIARRHEA IN YOUNG-CHILDREN IN NORTHERN ITALY

Abstract

During a 24-mo. period, 561 young chldren (6 mo.-2 yr of age) hospitalized for acute diarrhea were studied for enteric pathogens. Patients positive for > 1 pathogens were 359 (64.0%). Infection with 1 pathogen was found in 266 (47.4%) patients, whereas multiple infection was detected in 93 (16.6%) patients. Enteropathogens associated with disease were rotaviruses: 150 (26.7%), adenoviruses: 99 (17.6%), non-polio enteroviruses: 48 (8.5%), coronaviruses: 10 (1.8%), parvoviruses: 5 (0.9%), Salmonella sp.: 41 (7.3%), Campylobacter fetus: 45 (8.0%), Giardia lamblia: 8 (1.4%), and enteropathogenic Escherichia coli: 63 (11.2%) of which 15 (3%) produced heat-labile enterotoxin. Seasonal occurrence of enteropathogens is also described.