Paediatricians often encounter the following situation when dealing with infants and young children hospitalised due to rotavirus infection: the baby shows symptoms of vomiting and diarrhoea leading to dehydration, lying weakly in the hospital bed. Naturally, parents are very worried and urge the doctor to "quickly prescribe an effective medicine to help him fight the illness". However, in reality, as the case is a viral infection, there are currently no specific treatments for rotavirus. Doctors will primarily provide supportive care, such as focusing on rehydrating the patient.
As rotavirus is highly contagious and there is no specific medication to treat it once infected, we hope parents will take adequate infection prevention measures. Currently, prevention of rotavirus can be divided into two aspects: paying attention to hygiene and vaccination. Parents should teach their babies to pay attention to hygiene, wash their hands frequently, and advise them not to suck their fingers or put toys in their mouths often, so as to prevent "the virus from entering the body through the mouth".
Infants aged 6 to 24 months are at a peak age for rotavirus infection. Parents should consider vaccinating their eligible babies early, before the peak period. Rotavirus vaccines are administered orally. Taking one of the vaccines available on the market as an example, infants can take the first dose as early as 6 weeks after birth, followed by the second dose approximately 4 weeks later. The principle of the vaccine is to allow the baby's body to experience and recognise the process of the virus entering through the mouth, prompting the immune system to produce antibodies in the intestinal wall (IgA), thereby achieving protective efficacy.
Research indicates that the protection rate of the rotavirus vaccine ranges from 85% to 98%, and its tolerability has been proven. However, it is important to note that the vaccination course must be completed within a specific timeframe; therefore, parents wishing to have their babies vaccinated should remember to book an appointment with their doctor well in advance.
