HOSPITALIZATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH ROTAVIRUS DIARRHEA IN THE UNITED-STATES, 1993 THROUGH 1995 - SURVEILLANCE BASED ON THE NEW ICD-9-CM ROTAVIRUS-SPECIFIC DIAGNOSTIC CODE

The introduction of a specific International Classification of Disease s code for rotavirus diarrhea in 1992 prompted examination of the Nati onal Hospital Discharge Survey (NHDS) for trends in rotavirus-associat ed hospitalizations among US children aged 1 month through 4 years, Du ring 1993-1995, 13.5% of hospitalizations were associated with diarrhe a (n = 162,478/year), Rotavirus was the most common pathogen identifie d, coded in 16.5% of diarrhea cases (n = 26,798/year), and increased f rom 13.3% in 1993 to 18.9% in 1995. The age distribution and seasonali ty of hospitalizations of presumed noninfectious and viral etiology re sembled those associated with rotavirus. Rotavirus was reported as a c ause of diarrhea more frequently by hospitals that were large (greater than or equal to 100 beds), proprietary-owned, or in the West/Midwest . Although these findings suggest incomplete detection of rotavirus di arrhea cases, the large number of rotavirus-associated hospitalization s underscores the need for vaccines and indicates that NHDS data could be used to monitor the impact of a US rotavirus immunization program.