Progress in researches on infectious diarrhea and changes in disease burden and pathogenic spectrum of the disease

Diarrhea, causing 760 thousands deaths per year in children around the world, is one of global public health problems. Although as a common disease, diarrhea is both the second cause of death among children under 5 years old and the main cause of malnutrition in children. Infectious diarrhea, named based on etiological classification, is highly prevalent in many regions in the world and a serious illness to human health. The main pathogens causing acute intestinal infectious diarrhea include rotavirus, norovirus, astrovirus, Klebsiella bacteria, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Salmonella, Campylobacteria, Aeromonas, and Escherichia coli. The most of the disease burden of infectious diarrhea could be attributed to viral infections and rotavirus diarrhea is the leading viral diarrhea. In China, more than 60% of the 6 – 24 months old child hospitalizations due to gastroenteritis is caused by rotavirus infection. The study summarizes researches on disease burden and pathogenic spectrum of infectious diarrhea for providing evidences to improve preventive measures and reduce disease burden of the disease.