Ministry of Health recommends prevention of hand, foot and mouth disease

Faced with the increasing trend of hand, foot and mouth disease in some provinces, the Department of Preventive Medicine, Ministry of Health has just issued disease prevention recommendations.

Accordingly, in September 2016, the number of children with hand, foot and mouth disease in Ho Chi Minh City increased by 13% compared to August. In the first 9 months of the year, nearly 4,000 children with hand, foot and mouth disease were hospitalized. Recently, some outbreaks in schools have appeared in District 5, Hoc Mon district...

Also in Hanoi, at the Pediatrics Department of Saint Paul Hospital, the number of pediatric patients increased by 25% compared to normal days, of which the most alarming is hand, foot and mouth disease. Currently, it is the season for hand, foot and mouth disease, each day Saint Paul Hospital records 30-40 pediatric patients coming for examination, of which the majority are treated as outpatients at home.

Hand, foot and mouth disease is a viral illness that mainly affects children under 10 years of age and can occur in adults.

Hand, foot and mouth disease is a viral disease that mainly affects children under 10 years old and can occur in adults. The virus often causes fever, sore throat and blisters on the hands and feet. The disease is usually mild and recovers within 7-10 days. The disease is caused by an enterovirus (EV). One of the strains that causes the disease is EV71, which can cause serious complications such as meningitis, myocarditis, and acute pulmonary edema. In Vietnam, the epidemiology of hand, foot and mouth disease is complicated, with EV71 accounting for nearly 50% of cases testing positive for the virus that causes hand, foot and mouth disease.

The virus that causes hand, foot, and mouth disease can be transmitted from person to person through direct contact with the virus secreted in nasal and throat secretions, saliva, secretions from blisters, and feces of patients or healthy people carrying the virus. The virus is usually transmitted through hands and contact with contaminated surfaces. Infected people are most likely to transmit the disease to others during the first week of illness. The virus that causes hand, foot, and mouth disease can remain in the body for several weeks after the symptoms of the disease have disappeared. This means that people who have recovered in the early stages can still transmit the disease to others.

To proactively prevent Hand, Foot and Mouth disease, the Department of Preventive Medicine, Ministry of Health recommends that people and communities take the following measures:

1. Wash hands regularly with soap, preferably under running water (for both adults and children), especially before preparing food, before eating/feeding children, before holding children, after using the toilet, after changing diapers and cleaning children.

2. Practice good food hygiene: eat cooked food, drink boiled water; eating utensils must be washed clean before use (preferably soaked in boiling water); ensure clean water is used in daily activities; do not feed children; do not let children eat with their hands, suck their fingers, or suck on toys; do not let children share napkins, handkerchiefs, eating utensils such as bowls, plates, spoons, cups, or toys that have not been sterilized.

3. Regularly clean children's toys, surfaces, and daily contact tools such as school supplies, doorknobs, stair handrails, table/chair surfaces, and floors with soap or common detergents.

4. Do not let children come into contact with sick or suspected sick people.

5. Use hygienic toilets, patient excreta and waste must be collected and disposed of in hygienic toilets.

6. When a child shows signs of suspected illness, take the child immediately to a medical facility for examination, consultation and treatment.

According to knowledge