Maintain hygiene, schools told, as HFMD cases rise
The Malaysian Ministry of Health is expecting more hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) cases and has asked schools, kindergartens and parents to take the necessary precautions.
The virus is spread through the saliva, blisters and faeces of those infected, and it has an incubation period of three to five days.
Parents, teachers and caregivers must ensure hygiene by washing hands with water and soap after going to the toilet, touching napkins, after touching or treating blisters and after washing children who had moved their bowels.
If the child shows symptoms, parents and guardians should send him or her to the hospital or clinic. The child should not be sent to school, kindergarten or nursery, and the parents or guardians should not take the child to public places like supermarkets and shopping malls.
The ministry’s concern followed the death of a Standard One girl in Johor. She suffered from fever and pain in the arms and mouth for five days before being admitted to Hospital Sultan Ismail in Johor Baru last Friday. She died the next day.
Health Minister S. Subramaniam said in a statement yesterday that a total of 13,497 cases, an average of 964 a week, were reported nationwide from January to April 11. This was an increase of 83% over the same period last year where 7,368 cases were reported.
Sarawak had the most cases (6,333), followed by Selangor (2,727), Johor (919), Kuala Lumpur (661), Perak (642) and Sabah (593).
Health director-general Noor Hisham Abdullah, however, said the situation was still under control.
HFMD is endemic in Malaysia and occurred throughout the year, with one or two peaks a year. Based on the ministry’s monitoring, a large peak occurs once every three years and the last large peak was in 2012 with 34,519 cases but only one death.
“We expect a large peak this year,” Noor Hisham said in a report in The Star Online.
The ministry has also been strengthening the medical management of HFMD cases and conducting virological surveillance. – FMT
Category: Features, Health alert
