Diarrhea and its complications are the most important causes of infant death in most developing regions. The causes of the illness vary from dietary incompata-bilities to intestinal infection. The most important infectious causes are, in approximate order of importance: rotavirus, the bacteria Shigella (causing dysentery) and Salmonella, the parasite Giardia lamblia, and enteropathogenic Escherichia coli bacteria (a common cause of hospital nursery outbreaks). Breast-feeding is associated with a decreased occurrence of diarrhea and represents a major means of preventing infantile diarrhea in the developing world. See also Diarrhea.

McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology. Copyright © 2005 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.