Rotavirus is a condition that invades the gastrointestinal tract. It commonly affects infants and young children after about two days following exposure to the virus. Let’s look at what you should know about the virus in more detail.
Symptoms of Rotavirus
For the first few days, infected children can experience severe watery diarrhea accompanied by fever spans, reduced appetite, and dehydration. Excessive diarrhea can be dangerous due to loss of fluids. Signs of dehydration include reduced urination, dry mouth, throat, and dizziness while standing.
Mode of Transmission
The main path of transmission of the virus is through fecal matter from an infected person, who can pass the virus to others in close contact. Usually, the virus becomes active when an individual ingests rotavirus-contaminated food. This could happen when touching contaminated objects and eating food without cleaning your hands thereby facilitating the transmission cycle.
How Do You Prevent Rotavirus?
One of the preventive measures is maintaining proper hand hygiene before meals, after changing babies’ diapers and after using the toilet. A vital intervention is vaccinating infants against the virus. The vaccine is available and is administered orally.
There is no particular drug to curb the virus, but your doctor may recommend medicine to cure the symptoms associated with the infection. Since dehydration happens to be a common and severe symptom, it’s advisable to give lots of fluids to infected individuals. Moreover, you can acquire over-the-counter drugs, but you may need to seek medical attention in a case of delayed response to medication.
Bottom line
Rotavirus affects young children and infants leading to episodes of diarrhea. The condition causes dehydration which can be fatal if not solved on time. You can prevent the virus by practicing good hand hygiene and getting vaccinations for infants. On this note, you should seek medical attention to avoid complications and cut the transmission cycle.
