Rotavirus Symptoms in an Infant

Rotavirus is a common virus among infants and children. According to Kids Health, "Almost all kids have had a rotavirus infection by the time they're 5 years old." The danger of the virus is the potential for an infected child to become severely dehydrated, and the website of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) indicates that the contraction and spread of the virus cannot be controlled by clean water supply and proper hygiene. As a result, as of January 2007, the AAP "recommends routine immunization of infants with 3 doses of pentavalent rotavirus vaccine administered orally at 2, 4, and 6 months of age." However, for infants who have not received the immunizations, the symptoms of rotavirus should be recognized and reported to a doctor promptly in order to avoid dehydration.

Fever

The first sign of rotavirus in an infant is often a low-grade fever. Parents and other infant-caregivers may disregard this initial symptom because it is mild. This is why it is important to keep careful health records, monitoring and noting even small physical changes in a baby so that a full list of symptoms can be later submitted to a doctor if and when the child begins showing further signs of the virus.

Diarrhea

The hallmark of rotavirus is persistent diarrhea that has a wretched smell, is watery and is brown, green or mustard-yellow in color. Although it is normal for infants to have diarrhea, rotavirus diarrhea is distinctly different from a baby's normal bowl movement consistency and odor and can be alarming to parents and infant-caregivers who are unfamiliar with the virus.

Vomiting

An infant with rotavirus will often experience frequent vomiting. It is common for babies to spit up after a feeding, but rotavirus can cause vomiting that surpasses the amount of liquid and frequency of an infant's normal spitting up. In contrast to spitting up, vomiting caused by rotavirus is also not necessarily connected with a feeding.

Abdominal Pain

Associated with both the diarrhea and vomiting is abdominal pain. However, because an infant cannot express the fact that his stomach hurts, caregivers should watch for other indications of this symptom. An infant experiencing abdominal pain may be more fussy than usual, cry inconsolably, refuse to lay on his stomach or express discomfort when a gentle pressure is applied to his abdomen.

Dehydration

The excessive diarrhea and vomiting can lead to an infant becoming dehydrated. In some cases, when the condition goes undetected and untreated, the dehydration may become so severe that a child will need to be admitted to the hospital to have fluids administered intravenously. Symptoms of dehydration associated with rotavirus include a lack of tears when the infant is crying, overall lethargy, desperate thirst, dry skin that does not quickly retract when gentle pressure is applied and sunken eyes.