Dongguan reported a jump last Friday in the number of children sickened with hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD), saying approximately 5,000 cases have been diagnosed from January to March.
As of March 30, a total of 22,764 cases of HFMD had been diagnosed in Guangdong Province. Among them approximately 5,000 were reported in Dongguan, with three confirmed deaths.
Over 70% of the cases in Dongguan were caused by Enter Virus 71, also known as EV-71, according to Zhong Xinguang, the Director of Dongguan Disease Control and Prevention Center.
To curb any possible outbreak of HFMD, Dongguan Health Bureau has urged any children with symptoms of the disease "to be sent immediately to health clinics", in order to prevent more deaths caused by the disease.
Text messages will be sent to over 1.5 million mobiles around the city to help parents prevent the disease infecting their children, the Bureau says.
About Hand, foot and mouth disease
Hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) is a human syndrome caused by intestinal viruses of the Picornaviridae family. The most common strains causing HFMD are Coxsackie A virus and Enterovirus 71 (EV71).
HFMD usually affects infants and children, and is quite common. It is moderately contagious and is spread through direct contact with the mucus, saliva, or feces of an infected person. It typically occurs in small epidemics in nursery schools or kindergartens, usually during the summer and autumn months.
(By Morvin Chow)
