Epidemiological characteristics of other infectious diarrheas in Zhejiang province, 2005 - 2009

Objective To understand the epidemiological characteristics of other infectious diarrheas in Zhejiang. Methods Descriptive epidemiological analysis was conducted on the incidence data of other infectious diarrheas in Zhejiang reported through the National Disease Reporting Information System from 2005 to 2009. Results A total of 541 482 cases of other infectious diarrheas were reported in Zhejiang during this period, the annual incidence ranged from 156.53/lakh to 264.89/lakh, which declined with years. The cases among children less than 2 years old accounted for 30.73% of the total cases and the deaths among them accounted for 66.67% of the total deaths. The cases mainly occurred during winter, which began to increase obviously in October and peaked during November-December. Totally 30 outbreaks were reported during this period, but 21 occurred in schools and child care settings, accounting for 70.00%. The laboratory confirmed cases accounted for 6.92％ of the total cases. Rotavirus infection and Campylobacter jejuni infection accounted for 89.35% and 9.70% of the total laboratory confirmed cases respectively. Conclusion Infants and young children belong to the high-risk population of other infectious diarrheas, so it is necessary to strengthen the disease prevention and control in schools and child care settings. Great importance should be attached to the research of suitable technique for the prevention and control of rotavirus and Campylobacter jejuni infections among children.