Below are charts showing patients notified to NSW Health with a particular infectious disease. The first graph shows the number of notifications by month. The second graph shows the age and gender of patients notified in the last year.
Name the infectious disease …
Answer
The disease is rotavirus. Globally, rotavirus is a common cause of severe gastroenteritis in early childhood. In the prevaccination era, almost all children were infected by the time they reach five years of age. Although responsible for about half a million deaths per year in developing countries, rotavirus deaths were rare but hospitalisations common in developed countries, especially in children under 2 years of age. Vaccine was introduced into the National Immunisation Program in 2007, leading to substantial reductions in hospital presentations for gastroenteritis.
The top graph shows notifications of patients with laboratory confirmed rotavirus infections since 2010. These represent only a fraction of all infections. The bottom graph shows that even though small children remain at highest risk even in the vaccination era, people of any age can be infected, especially the elderly.
For more information see Belshaw, Daniel A; Muscatello, David J; Ferson, Mark J and Nurkic, Alma. Rotavirus vaccination one year on. Communicable Diseases Intelligence Quarterly Report, Vol. 33, No. 3, 2009 Sep: 337-340.,Department of Health - Rotavirus vaccination one year on..., Australian Immunisation Handbook - Rotavirus and Rotavirus