Rotavirus diarrhoea is considered to be the 'killer diarrhea' with over 600,000 infant deaths being attributed to this virus every year. Of these 25,000 deaths occur in Pakistan alone and this figure is seen to be the highest in all of Middle East and North Africa.
Diarrhea is the second leading cause of deaths worldwide among children under the age of five years. Of this, rotavirus diarrhoea is the leading cause of infant mortality. Therefore, health professionals advised the parents to be aware of this deadly disease which strikes children across the world between the age of 6 months and two years.
Professor Sajid Maqbool commented that around 4.36 million Pakistani children under the age of five fall victim to a number of diseases including diarrhea, malaria, respiratory diseases and measles every year. Of these, diarrheal disease remains the second most common cause of deaths among children under the age of 5 years, he added.
He said that in countries like Pakistan where infant mortality is high, extra care must be taken to understand the severity of the disease and take appropriate measures. "No treatment exists for Rotavirus, however prevention is an option. In fact vaccination has been recognised as the only control measure likely to have an impact on the burden of Rotavirus," he added. He urged upon the parents that they should consider vaccinating their children against rotavirus diarrhea.