CAPACITACIÓN EN INGLÉS MÉDICO – PRÁCTICA PREPARCIAL - TEMA 1

Rotavirus Gastroenteritis
Infection with rotavirus is a leading cause of severe diarrhea in infants and young children in the
United States and worldwide. In the United States, the disease occurs more often during the winter,
with the most activity occurring from November to May. Most children, whether in the US or
elsewhere, are infected with rotavirus before they are two years old.

Sometimes diarrhea and vomiting due to rotavirus infection can lead to the loss of body fluids
(dehydration), which in some instances may be severe enough to require hospitalization. In
developing countries, rotavirus gastroenteritis is a major cause of childhood death and causes
several hundred thousand deaths annually.

Once an infant is exposed to rotavirus, it takes approximately 2 days for symptoms to appear. Infants
and children develop vomiting and watery diarrhea that may last 3-8 days, and fever and abdominal
pain occur frequently. A child may have rotavirus gastroenteritis more than once, because there are
many different rotavirus types, but repeat infections tend to be less severe than the original infection.

Treatment for rotavirus infection mainly involves drinking fluids containing water with salts and certain
minerals (oral rehydration). Such treatment is usually effective; however, severe cases may require a
visit to the emergency room or hospitalization so that lost body fluids can be replaced with fluids
given through a thin tube placed into the veins (IV or intravenous line).

Rotavirus is contagious and the infection is usually spread from person to person, through the fecal-
oral route. Fecal-oral transmission occurs when bacteria or viruses found in the stool of one child are
swallowed by another child. This can occur when small amounts of fecal matter may be found on
surfaces such as toys, books, clothing, etc. and on the hands of parents or child-care providers; but
are usually invisible. Rotavirus may also be transmitted through intake of fecally-contaminated water
or food or by respiratory droplets that people sneeze, cough, drip, or exhale. Rates of the illness
among children in developed and less developed countries are similar.

https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/vaccines/rotateq-rotavirus-vaccine-questions-and-answers

A. Marque Verdadero o Falso

1. Miles de niños mueren anualmente de esta infección en los Estados Unidos de América. ( )
2. La reinfección por rotavirus tiene iguales características que la primera infección. ( )
3. La transmisión del virus puede producirse entre niños o entre adultos y niños. ( )

B. Complete en español con información que encontrará contenida en frases nominales del texto.

1. La rehidratación oral consiste en ……..

2. La administración intravenosa consiste en……………..
 CAPACITACIÓN EN INGLÉS MÉDICO – PRÁCTICA PREPARCIAL - TEMA 1

C. ¿Qué tienen en común estas oraciones? ¿Cuál sería el equivalente en español?

Most children are infected with rotavirus…

Once an infant is exposed to rotavirus…
Rotavirus may also be transmitted through intake of …

D. Responda en español con información del texto, tratando de usar sus palabras.

1. ¿Qué síntomas presentan los niños afectados y qué consecuencias pueden acarrear estos
síntomas?
2. ¿Cuál es el tratamiento a seguir y de qué dos maneras se lo puede administrar?
3. ¿Cuál es la vía de contagio de esta infección y cómo puede concretarse dicho contagio?
4. ¿Qué datos epidemiológicos ofrece el texto?

E. Identifique cuatro ideas más que el texto desarrolla y expréselas en una frase nominal en
español como la primera:

1. TRATAMIENTO USUAL PARA LA INFECCIÓN POR ROTAVIRUS