Human group A rotavirus (RVA) is the most important enteric virus among infants and young children less than 5 year of age that can annually lead to more than 520,000 deaths worldwide. The main symptoms of rotavirus infection in children consist of watery diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain, nausea and fever. The diarrheal episodes can vary from mild cases for limited period of disease, to extremely serious complications such as severe electrolyte unbalance, shock and death. The genus Rotavirus belongs to the family Reoviridae. RVA genome contains of 11 segments of double-stranded RNA that is located inside a triple-layered non-envelope virus particle. Rotaviruses are classified into 7 serogroups (A to G) based on the characteristics of the VP6 membrane protein. The aim of this study is to investigate RVA in Tehran and Karaj residents suffering from gastroenteritis complications during 2017 to 2018.

Stool specimens (N=110) were collected from Shahid Fahmideh Pediatrics Hospital, Tehran Children Hospital, Taleghani Educational Hospital, Vali Asre Hospital, Karaj Shahid Beheshti Hospital. Viral RNA was extracted from stool samples and cDNA were synthesized. All Samples screened for rotavirus with primers that amplifies the VP6 sequence of the virus genome.

Rotavirus group A was detected in 23 of 110 samples (20.9%). Comparison of RVA infection between male and female patients showed that there was not any statistically significant difference (31.1% male versus 21.4% female, P value=0.434).

In the present report we describe relatively high prevalence of RVA in two provinces of Iran (Tehran and Alborz provinces). The finding shows that vaccination against Rotavirus is an absolute necessity for Iranian children. In addition, launching an annual surveillance program for better understanding of Rotavirus group A molecular epidemiology is a demanding requirement.