Hand-foot-mouth disease hits Mekong Delta
(VOV) - Nearly 1,300 patients in the Mekong Delta province of Hau Giang have been infected by hand-foot-mouth disease since the beginning of 2012, trebling last year‘s figure.
More than 80 percent of the patients are children under three years old, and over 84 percent are those under five.
Infections were confirmed in 74 communes, with all samples testing positive for the EV 71 type virus.
Provincial authorities are worried about a possible outbreak of hand-foot-mouth epidemic if the deadly disease is not kept under control in the coming days.
Local hospitals and clinics claim to be short of staff to provide intensive treatment for hand-foot-mouth patients.
In addition, more than 520 patients have contracted dengue fever over the past nine months.
Hau Giang’s healthcare sector is sterilizing the infected areas, intensifying preventive measures, and raising public awareness of personal hygiene and environmental sanitation.