Epidemiological and Clinical Features of Rotavirus Associated Acute Infantile Diarrhoea in Cairo, Egypt

Rotavirus was looked for in stool specimens from 200 randomly chosen infants and children aged 1-24 months presenting with acute diarrhoea of not more than 5 days duration at the Bab El-Sha'reya University Hospital during a 12-month period (January-December 1986). Forty per cent of cases were positive for rotavirus by the ELISA technique. Considering the seasonal pattern, during the hot months May to August, the monthly percentage of rotavirus positive cases ranged from 24 to 32 per cent while during the rest of the year, the range was from 37 to 60 per cent. There was no statistically significant difference between the rotavirus positive and negative cases as regards mean age in months (9.5 +/- 5.1 and 9.2 +/- 5.5, respectively), type of feeding or nutritional status. However, rotavirus positive cases were significantly more likely to present earlier, to have watery stools, to vomit or even to have vomiting before the onset of diarrhoea and to have respiratory symptoms. On the other hand, the means of dehydration score, rectal temperature and serum Na+ were not significantly different between the two groups.     

An epidemiological study of energy protein malnutrition in a rural community in Egypt.

A field study was carried out in Sendion Village in Qualyubeya Governorate, Egypt, to assess the nutritional status of infants and preschool children. 1527 children from 0-6 years were studied. Of the 840 males and 687 females studied, 404 children (26.45%) were suffering from various degrees of energy protein malnutrition (EPM). The total prevalence rate was lower among male than among female children but the difference was not statistically significant. 97 of the 404 EPM cases were considered severe while 307 were classified as underweight or mildly undernourished. Age was an important factor in the incidence of malnutrition. The prevalence rate of EPM was 13.6% in the 1st 6 months of life, 23.2% in the 2nd 6 months, and highest (32.6-35.2%) in the 12-47 month age group. The rate dropped off after 48 months. The prevalence rate was higher among those fed with all artificial milk or a combination of artificial and breast milk (29.8%) than among those infants who were totally breast fed (22.49%); the difference was statistically significant at the p.01 level. Birth order had no effect on the incidence of EPM. There was a greater but not significantly different incidence of EPM among children in larger families. Prevalence rates in this study were lower than have been found by other investigators.