Problems of viral gastroenteritis in adults

The review is devoted to a challenging problem of modern infectology – viral gastroenteritis. The improvement of laboratory diagnostic methods has made it possible to identify a significant number of viral pathogens for which gastroenteritis has been established or is considered possible. The main pathogens are rotaviruses, noroviruses, sapoviruses, astroviruses, etc., while norovirus is the primary cause of sporadic cases and outbreaks of gastroenteritis.Adults experience a predominantly mild and short-term self-limiting course of the disease. The main risk factor for severe course and unfavorable outcome of viral gastroenteritis in adults is any immunodeficiency condition, and therefore the patient’s age, concomitant diseases, and the use of immunosuppressive therapy should be taken into account.Cancer patients and recipients of solid organ and blood stem cell transplantation are a particularly vulnerable group. In these patients, viral gastroenteritis often becomes chronic with a long period of viral shedding, which is frequently accompanied by the virus mutation. In turn, a viral infection can affect the course of non-infectious diseases and therapeutic approach, resulting in the need to discontinue immunosuppressive agents and causing post-transplant complications.