Introduction Rotavirus is a leading worldwide cause of acute gastroenteritis (AGE) in young children. This study done to estimate the burden of overall acute gastroenteritis, Rotavirus gastroenteritis (RVGE) and nosocomial RVGE in hospitalised children younger than 5 years of age, and to assess the age and seasonal distribution; duration of hospitalisation and additional hospitalisation associated with hospital-acquired RVGE.

Material and methods A cross-sectional, hospital based study was carried out among hospitalised children with acute gastroenteritis of age <5 years between 2011 and 2012. Demographic profile, clinical characteristics, prior hospitalisation were analysed using SPSS version 20 software. Chi-square test and t-test were used to compare variables.

Results Total Paediatric Admissions (<5 yrs excluding newborn): 2783

RVGE as well as Nosocomial RVGE peaks were observed in the months of January, February and April. The other AGE was noted to peak around May and November months. Nosocomial RVGE increases the duration of hospital stay 6 days vs 2 days.

Conclusion RVGE is highly contagious, and the efficiency of existing prevention measures (such as handwashing, isolation and cohorting) is variable because of numerous barriers to implementation. Prevention of RV infection by mass vaccination could have a positive impact by reducing the number of RVGE cases and thus reducing cross-infections and associated costs.