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In developing countries, diarrhea is a well-known scourge of childhood. In the U.S., by contrast, most diarrhea-related deaths occur among the elderly. To examine the epidemiology of severe diarrhea among U.S. adults and, in particular, the role of norovirus as a causative agent, CDC researchers probed a representative national database of hospital discharge codes with a nomogram designed to identify the presence of infectious gastroenteritis. The numbers of norovirus cases, which are seldom specifically identified in clinical practice, were estimated with a statistical tool based on the infection's marked seasonality.
Overall, between 1996 and 2007, rates of gastroenteritis decreased in infants and children (age, <18), but increased in all …