HCM City reports rise in hand-foot-mouth disease and dengue fever cases
VOV.VN - The number of children infected with hand-foot-mouth disease, as well as dengue fever, in Ho Chi Minh has been on the rise over recent times, according to the municipal Center for Disease Control (CDC).
During the first four months of the year, the southern city recorded 8,481 dengue fever cases, up 28% over the same period last year. From May 13 to May 19, there were 943 cases with most of them requiring hospitalisation in order to undergo treatment.
Last week, the city recorded a further death caused by dengue fever in Cu Chi district, thereby bringing the total number of fatalities up to seven so far.
Typical symptoms of dengue fever include high fever for between two to seven days, accompanied with signs of hemorrhage such as petechial spots, teeth, or nose bleeding, bruises, and abnormal vaginal bleeding occurring in pubertal girls, according to the centre.
A number of drastic measures were taken to cope with the disease, including launching a campaign to kill mosquito larvae, and calling for the community to respond to the 12th ASEAN Dengue Day.
Regarding the hand-foot-mouth disease, the southern metropolis has recorded a total of 2,562 cases, with 96% of infections being children aged one to five years old.
Most notably, 882 patients were found last week, several times higher than the average seen during the previous four weeks.
As a means of preventing the disease, it is necessary for both children and their caregivers to wash hands frequently with soap several times a day. In addition, it is advisable to eat well-cooked foods and drink boiled water, the municipal CDC recommended.
Typical symptoms of hand-foot-mouth disease include fever, sore throat, oral mucosal and skin lesions, mainly in the form of blisters, commonly found on palms, soles, knees and buttocks.
