Clinical features of viral and bacterial gastroenteritis in hospitalized children.

The clinical course of 119 children, hospitalized with acute gastroenteritis of known etiology, was studied. The severity of disease was measured by a scoring system that showed that the disease caused by Escherichia coli was the most severe, followed in decreasing order by Salmonella, human reovirus-like agent (HRLA) and Shigella. The clinical features of salmonella and shigella infections differed from those reported in other countries. Fifty percent of all patients recovered after 5 days of treatment, but 20% of the patients with bacterial infections continued to have symptoms for 10 days or longer. The relationships between etiological agents and various symptoms were measured by odds ratios. These associations may provide a basis for clinical prediction of the etiological agent.