Rotavirus disease and its prevention in infants and children.

Rotavirus disease causes immense morbidity and mortality in developing countries. In the United States, mortality is very rare, but the health care and societal costs of rotavirus-related morbidity exceed one billion dollars annually A new vaccine that prevents the illness recently was marketed in the United States. Economic issues surround national recommendations for its use. Economic, safety, and effectiveness issues will be resolved only with surveillance systems that document the effectiveness of immunization programs and their cost-effectiveness.