Distribution of Adenovirus and Rotavirus by Age and Seasons in Children Diagnosed with Viral Gastroenteritis

Introduction: This study aimed to analyze the distribution of rotavirus and adenovirus in pediatric patients according to the age and seasons of infection. The study included pediatric patients who presented to our center and were investigated for fecal rotavirus and adenovirus with a prediagnosis of viral gastroenteritis. Materials and Methods: The data of 7,841 patients, aged 0-13 years, who were diagnosed with acute gastroenteritis and were investigated for fecal rotavirus and adenovirus between January 2018 and July 2019 in the pediatric emergency, outpatient clinics, and inpatient services of our hospital, were retrospectively reviewed from the hospital database. The distribution of viruses, isolated according to the age groups and months and years, was analyzed statistically according to these age groups and seasons of infection. Results: Of 7,714 patients, rotavirus or adenovirus was detected in 2,582 (33.5%) patients: adenovirus was detected in 1,473 (19.1%) patients; rotavirus was detected in 1,109 (14.4%) patients (p<0.05). Adenovirus was detected more frequently in the zero-to-one age group and rotavirus, in the one-to-six age group (p<0.05). Adenovirus was detected more frequently in autumn and summer (p<0.05). 70.3% of patients with adenovirus or rotavirus were children in the zero-to-two age group. Conclusion: In our study, we found that adenoviruses are the more common cause of viral gastroenteritis compared with rotaviruses. We determined that approximately 70% of patients with adenovirus or rotavirus are children in the zero-to-two age group.