>> Vietnamese hand, foot and mouth disease death toll mounts to 109
Six children at Bach Khoa Preschool in Hanoi were infected with hand, foot and mouth disease between September 15 and 19.
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| A deserted classroom at Preschool No. 5 |
Four of those were in the same class, said the school\'s headmaster, Pham Thu Hoai.
The school has started to pay strict attention to hygiene, even sterilising their toys.
Preschool No. 5 in Ngoc Ha Ward, Ba Dinh District, has nearly 500 students. But on September 23, only 52 of them came to the class after a three-year old girl, H.T.B.N, died of hand, foot and mouth disease.
Deputy Director of the National Hospital of Paediatrics, Tran Minh Dien, said tests indicated that the disease is caused by the virus EV 71. Symptoms include a high fever, 39-40 degrees.
This was the first death caused by the disease in Hanoi.
According to the municipal Department of Preventive Health, so far this year the city reported about 320 hand, foot and mouth cases, most of mild.
The Ministry of Health said that, nationwide, there were 52,321 cases of the disease, causing 109 deaths.
Hand, foot and mouth disease is especially prevalent in the south, which accounts for about 71% of reported cases and 91% of deaths.