It was recently reported that children receiving the rotavirus vaccine may be less likely to develop type 1 diabetes than children who don’t get this routine childhood vaccination. Currently, it is thought that the rotavirus infection may accelerate the development of type 1 diabetes, although the exact reason for this connection isn’t clear.
In a recent study, researchers compared rates of type 1 diabetes in the eight years before and the eight years after May of 2007. This is when a routine oral rotavirus vaccine was introduced for infants six weeks and older.
After the vaccine’s debut, type 1 diabetes cases declined 14 percent among children age four and younger.
Rotavirus is a condition that often causes severe diarrhea, vomiting, fever, and abdominal pain. In some cases, the child may become extremely dehydrated and require hospitalization.