Hand-Foot-Mouth disease is currently spreading quite rapidly in the Mekong Delta, informed Dr. Ha Anh Tuan, Head of Intensive Care Unit of the Children Hospital in Can Tho City.
The spread of Hand-Foot-Mouth disease, a contagious viral infection that affects mostly infants and children, usually occurs at the end of the year. Presently, there are many serious cases of Hand-Foot-Mouth disease in the hospital.
The Children Hospital in the Mekong Delta City of Can Tho is receiving child patients from the Mekong Delta Provinces of Vinh Long, Hau Giang, Bac Lieu and An Giang. In November alone, the hospital admitted 189 cases of Hand-Foot-Mouth. In December, up to 117 cases of Hand-Foot-Mouth were hospitalized. The disease also killed a three-year-old girl infant, Vo Phuong Nghi in Trung Hung Commune in Co Do District in Can Tho City. The baby was hospitalized in critical condition when her pulse and blood pressure could not be measured and she turned blue. Doctors tried their best to save the baby girl but their attempts went in vain.
The disease is characterized by fever and a rash most frequently seen on the palms of the hands, soles of the feet, and inside the mouth. Parents should look for early symptoms to provide timely medical treatment for their children.
