By Xinhua,
Beijing : China Saturday warned that cases of hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) in the country might increase during the peak seasons for the disease in June and July.
This year, more incidents of HFMD, caused by Enterovirus 71 or EV71, were reported in Singapore and Taiwan, compared to the corresponding period last year.
In China, HFMD cases were reported in the eastern Chinese province of Anhui and other provinces, according to a government report.
The government has issued a new guideline on the prevention and control of the decease. It has also started new measures to train paediatricians to tackle the disease.
A suspected death from the disease was reported early Saturday in south China’s Guangdong Province.
On Friday, the health authorities in the central Hubei Province announced that they have found around 340 cases of HFMD. However, no deaths were reported.
In Anhui, the toll rose to 22 after another child died in the eastern Fuyang City, local authorities said Friday. The government has urged hospitals to report the disease within 24 hours.
HFMD usually starts with a slight fever followed by blisters and ulcers in the mouth and rashes on hands and feet. It may also cause high fever, meningitis, encephalitis, pulmonary oedema and paralysis in some children.