Babies with hand-food-mouth disease are treated at HCM City’s Hospital for Tropical Diseases. (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – The has
asked local authorities and hospitals nationwide to strengthen preventive
measures to control the .
In the first nine months of this year, over
,500 infections were reported nationwide, and nearly 25,900 victims were
hospitalised, six of whom died in five cities and provinces in the south.
Deputy Director of the Health Ministry’s
Preventive Medicine Department Dang Quang Tan said that compared with the same
period last year, the number of infections had dropped by 25 percent and the
number of hospitalised patients had fallen 20 percent.
Hanoi, Da Nang and localities in the south
including Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Dong Thap and Long An have
seen sharp increases in the last few weeks.
The disease tends to spread quickly as students return
for the new school year, he said, adding that there was no vaccine for the
disease.
The Health Ministry asked local health
departments to work closely with education departments and schools to spread
the word about disease prevention and control, especially in kindergartens and
preschools.
Schools have been instructed to provide soap in
bathrooms and ensure students wash their hands.
In Vietnam, the disease occurs throughout the
year, but the peak season is from March until May and September to December.
Children can get hand-foot-mouth disease at all ages but children below three
years old are more susceptible.
The disease is usually a short mild illness, but
in some cases patients can experience complications such as encephalitis,
meningitis, myocarditis and acute pneumochysis, which can cause death if not
properly treated.
Last year, over 100,000 hand-foot-mouth disease
cases were detected, of which one death was reported.-VNA
Source: VietnamPlus
