Question
During autumn and winter, if infants experience frequent, large amounts of watery diarrhea, accompanied by fever and upper respiratory tract infection symptoms, what could be the cause?
Answer
Autumn and winter are peak seasons for pediatric diarrhea, most often caused by rotavirus infection. Due to its frequent recurrence during these seasons, it is commonly referred to as “autumn nausea and vomiting.” The disease appears sporadically or in small outbreaks and spreads through fecal-oral transmission, as well as through respiratory droplets. The incubation period is 1 to 3 days. It most frequently occurs in infants aged 6 to 24 months, with cases being rare in those over 4 years old. The onset is acute, often accompanied by fever and upper respiratory tract infection symptoms, without obvious toxic symptoms. Initially, there may be dry heaves, which often precede nausea and vomiting. Diarrhea is frequent, with large volumes and high water content, yellow watery or curd-like stools with a small amount of mucus, and no foul smell. This condition is self-limiting, with a natural course of approximately 3 to 8 days.