Faecal specimens collected from 2101 patients with acute gastroenteritis from three cities (Pune, Alappuzha, Belgaum) in India during 1994–1995 and 2004–2010 were tested for group B rotavirus (RVB) by amplification of the NSP2 gene using RT–PCR. Seventy-five (3·6%) specimens were shown to contain RVB RNA. The positivity rate in Pune, Alappuzha and Belgaum was 4·1%, 7·3% and 4·1%, respectively, in the 2000s which was not significantly different from the detection rate in the 1990s in Pune (2·5%, P>0·05). RVB infections prevailed in adolescents and adults (62/1082, 5·7%) compared to children (13/1019, 1·3%, P<0·001) and were detected throughout the year. Phylogenetically, all strains clustered in an NSP2 lineage together with Indian-Bangladeshi RVB strains belonging to VP7 genotype G2. The study confirmed the occurrence of RVB infections in western India and reported for the first time circulation of RVB strains in southern India, suggesting that an increased awareness and monitoring for RVB infections is necessary in India.
