Rotavirus and Norovirus Infections in Children Under 5 Years Old with Acute Gastroenteritis in Southwestern China, 2018–2020

Objective Rotaviruses and noroviruses are important causes of acute gastroenteritis in children. While previous studies in China have mainly focused on rotavirus, we investigated the incidence of norovirus in addition to rotavirus in Southwestern China. Methods From January 2018 to December 2020, cases of rotavirus or norovirus infections among children under five ages with acute gastroenteritis were evaluated retrospectively. Results The detection rate of rotavirus was 24.5% (27,237/111,070) and norovirus was 26.1% (4649/17,797). Among 17,113 cases submitted for dual testing of both rotavirus and norovirus, mixed rotavirus/norovirus infections were detected in 5.0% (859/17,113) of cases. While there was no difference in norovirus incidence in outpatient compared to hospitalized cases, rotavirus was detected two times more in outpatients compared to hospitalized cases (26.6% vs.13.6%; P Conclusion Our results indicate that rotavirus and norovirus are still important viral agents in pediatric acute gastroenteritis in Southwestern China.