Hand-foot-mouth epidemic still spreads

<p>The number of Chinese children infected with hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) continues to rise, with reported cases exceeding 8,531 on Monday.<br/><br/></p><table align="left" border="0" bordercolordark="#ffffff" bordercolorlight="#ffffff" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="2" style="BORDER-RIGHT: #ffffff 0px; BORDER-TOP: #ffffff 0px; BORDER-LEFT: #ffffff 0px; WIDTH: 80px; BORDER-BOTTOM: #ffffff 0px; HEIGHT: 20px; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff"><tbody><tr><td align="middle" style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff" valign="center"><table align="left" bgcolor="#c1cddb" border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" width="244"><tbody><tr><td><table bgcolor="#fffde8" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="242"><tbody><tr><td colspan="3"><p><font color="#cb0000" face="Arial" size="2"><b>Related readings:<br/></b></font><font color="#006699"><font face="Arial" size="2"><img id="815477" md5="" src="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../../images/attachement/gif/site1/20080505/001320d123930989106305.gif"/> <a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../../../cndy/2008-05/05/content_6660355.htm">Battling the virus</a><br/></font></font><font color="#006699"><font color="#006699"><font face="Arial" size="2"><img id="815478" md5="" src="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../../images/attachement/gif/site1/20080505/001320d123930989106706.gif"/> <a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../04/content_6660223.htm">Anhui sees 622 new EV71 virus cases; total exceeds 5,100</a><font color="#006699"><font color="#006699"><font face="Arial" size="2"><font color="#006699"><font face="Arial" size="2"><img id="815479" md5="" src="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../../images/attachement/gif/site1/20080505/001320d123930989106707.gif"/> <a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../04/content_6660245.htm">Guangdong reports third child death from EV71 virus</a><br/></font></font><font color="#006699"><font color="#006699"><font face="Arial" size="2"><img id="815480" md5="" src="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../../images/attachement/gif/site1/20080505/001320d123930989106708.gif"/> <a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../04/content_6658976.htm">Minister heads anti-virus efforts</a><br/></font></font></font></font></font></font><img id="815481" md5="" src="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../../images/attachement/gif/site1/20080505/001320d12393098910d109.gif"/> <a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../01/content_6656559.htm">Virus infection hits 2,477, kills 20</a><br/><img id="815482" md5="" src="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../../images/attachement/gif/site1/20080505/001320d12393098910e60a.gif"/> <a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../01/content_6655990.htm">Virus under control, but 'will spread'</a><br/><img id="815484" md5="" src="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../../images/attachement/gif/site1/20080505/001320d12393098910ff0b.gif"/><a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/05/../../2008-04/29/content_6652152.htm">Mass intestinal virus infection up to 1,520, kills 20</a></font></font></font></p></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table>All were aged below six, with the majority being under two.<br/><br/>Altogether 25 children have died of the disease. Tests have confirmed 24 of the deaths were triggered by the virus known as enterovirus 71 or EV71.<br/><br/>According to the Guidelines Regarding Prevention and Control of HFMD published on the Ministry of Health website, HFMD can be caused by a host of intestinal viruses, but EV71 and the Coxsackievirus (Cox A 16) were the most common.<br/><br/>Anhui Province, in east China, and Guangdong Province, south China were the worst hit areas. Twenty-two of the deaths occurred in Fuyang, a city in northwestern Anhui, and the rest happened in Guangdong.<br/><br/>The two regions were followed by Beijing, Jiangsu, Hunan and Hubei, according to statistics released by local health departments.<br/><br/>In Anhui alone, 622 new cases were reported on Saturday, including 362 in Fuyang, driving up the number of children with HFMD to 5,151 in Anhui.<br/><br/>Beijing has recorded at least 1,010 cases of the disease, while Guangdong registered 925 cases as of Sunday.<br/><br/>Both EV71 and Cox A16 can cause HFMD, which usually starts with a slight fever followed by blisters and ulcers in the mouth and rashes on the hands and feet.<br/><br/>Those sickened by EV71 often show serious symptoms. It can also lead to meningitis, encephalitis, pulmonary edema and paralysis in some children. There is no vaccine.<br/><br/>Saying reports of HFMD could increase in the next few months, the Health Ministry issued a circular late last month requiring better management and surveillance of the disease.<br/><br/>The ministry asked hospitals for daily reports on the disease, and for local health departments to report emergencies promptly and increase investment in research into the disease.</div>