We have long since recognized the need for a safe and effective rotavirus vaccine and the significant impact that it can have throughout the world. Because of dehydration due to rotavirus infections, more than 600,000 infants and young children die each year. While most deaths are in developing countries, hospitalizations in Europe are common.
Quotes about rotavirus (4 Quotes)
Rotavirus basically affects everybody by the time they are 5. If we took blood samples of all people, it would be rare to find someone who has not had rotavirus.
With about 2.7 million episodes of rotavirus occurring each year among children under age five in the U.S., this ACIP decision highlights the importance of rotavirus disease prevention and adds this needed vaccine to the current pediatric immunization schedule. Merck is proud that its 15 years of research and development resulted in the availability of this vaccine. For the past several years we have been producing ROTATEQ and plan to meet the anticipated demand for the vaccine following this recommendation from the ACIP.
If you have a child under 3 who comes into the emergency department in winter with fever and vomiting or diarrhea or both, there's a 90 chance it's rotavirus.