Study Details the Effect of Rotavirus Vaccine on Trends in Primary Care Visits

Researchers studied the trend in primary care visits for acute gastroenteritis in young children after the introduction of the rotavirus vaccine in 2013, a 2-dose oral vaccine administered to 2- and 3-month-old infants. Their findings showed a decrease in acute gastroenteritis visits throughout the year, with a sharp reduction during the historically high months of rotavirus circulation. In addition, their findings also showed a decrease in older children and adult visits, suggesting herd immunity.

The study, conducted in the United Kingdom, used primary care data from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink and age-stratified time-series analyses to determine adjusted incidence rate ratios for the number of acute gastroenteritis in children and adults before and after the vaccine was introduced. The number of cases averted and healthcare costs averted were estimated.
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Overall, their analysis showed a 15% decrease in the rates of acute gastroenteritis in infants after the vaccine was introduced. There was a 41% decrease during historically high months of rotavirus circulation. Likewise, researchers noticed that rates of primary care visits of adults and children with acute gastroenteritis also decreased, indicating herd immunity. The researchers estimated 87,376 visits by children under 5 were avoided, with an estimated £12.5 million reduction in health care costs.

In conclusions, researchers showed a decrease in acute gastroenteritis in infants, young children, and adults since the introduction of the rotavirus vaccine. Moreover, the reduction in cases resulted in a reduction in healthcare costs.

—Melissa Weiss

Reference:

Thomas SL, Walker JL, Fenty J, et al. Impact of the national rotavirus vaccination programme on acute gastroenteritis in England and associated costs averted [published online December 20, 2016]. Vaccine. doi: dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2016.11.057.