Rapid Active Sampling Surveys as a Tool to Evaluate Factors Associated with Acute Gastroenteritis and Norovirus Infection among Children in Rural Guatemala

Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2017 Sep;97(3):944-948. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.16-1003. Epub 2017 Jul 19.

Abstract

We examined burden and factors associated with norovirus (NoV) acute gastroenteritis (AGE) among children in rural Guatemala. Children age 6 weeks to 17 years were enrolled into three AGE surveillance groups, using two-stage cluster sampling: a prospective participatory syndromic surveillance (PSS) cohort and two cross-sectional rapid active sampling (RAS) surveys, conducted from April 2015 to February 2016. Epidemiologic and NoV testing data were used to identify factors associated with NoV infection, AGE, and NoV+ AGE. The three cross-sectional surveys (PSS enrollment visit, RAS Survey 1, and RAS Survey 2) enrolled 1,239 children, who reported 134 (11%) AGE cases, with 20% of AGE and 11% of non-AGE samples positive for NoV. Adjusted analyses identified several modifiable factors associated with AGE and NoV infection. The cross-sectional RAS surveys were practical and cost-effective in identifying population-level risk factors for AGE and NoV, supporting their use as a tool to direct limited public health resources toward high-risk populations.

MeSH terms

  • Acute Disease
  • Adolescent
  • Caliciviridae Infections / diagnosis*
  • Caliciviridae Infections / epidemiology*
  • Caliciviridae Infections / virology
  • Child
  • Gastroenteritis / diagnosis*
  • Gastroenteritis / epidemiology*
  • Guatemala / epidemiology
  • Humans
  • Norovirus*
  • Population Surveillance / methods*