Sarawak records drop in HFMD cases — Health Dept

SIBU: Sarawak recorded a drop in the cumulative hand, mouth and foot disease ( HFMD) cases thus far this year with the public advised not to be complacent but continue taking precautionary measures.

Sarawak Health Department in a press statement here yesterday disclosed there were 3,514 cases recorded until epidemiology (epid) Week 27 (July 8) this year, compared to 6,432 cases in the same period last year.

“Although there is a drop in terms of number of cases this year (in Sarawak), weekly cases recorded in the past weeks are higher than that of the weekly cases for 2017, necessitating the public to be vigilant and take precautionary measures so that the HFMD situation will not breach the alert line,” the department said, adding the HFMD situation in Sarawak is currently below the warning level.

Kuching Division recorded the most cases until epid Week 27 with 996 cases followed by Miri (758), Sibu ( 378), Bintulu ( 288), Serian ( 202), Mukah (193), Samarahan (185), Limbang (143), Sri Aman (133), Betong ( 87), Kapit ( 83) and Sarikei (68).

The department also revealed that 23 schools/ kindergartens had been closed till EW27, 2018 but all of the institutions had since been reopened. When giving advice to parents, the department emphasised the importance of maintaining high standards of personal and environmental hygiene to minimise the risk of HFMD at all times.

Parents are urged to ensure their children adopt good hygiene practices such as frequently washing their hands with soap and water for example, before eating and after going to the toilet; cover mouth and nose with tissue when coughing or sneezing, and throw away the tissue into a bin immediately and not share food/drinks, eating utensils, toothbrushes, toys or towels with others.

“Parents should also practise hand hygiene and ensure that items such as toys, appliances or surfaces that are contaminated by nasal or oral secretions are cleaned and disinfected before being used again.

“They should consult a doctor early if their child has fever, mouth ulcers and rashes on the palms, soles or buttocks,” the department advised.

The department said children with HFMD should remain at home until all the blisters have dried up.

“During this period, contact with other children – including siblings should be avoided until the child recovers. The affected child should not be brought to any public or crowded places,” it added.

Meanwhile, Health directorgeneral Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said yesterday that a total of 27,296 cases of hand, foot and mouth disease ( HFMD) were reported nationwide as of June 30, up 28 per cent from the same period last year.

He said all states except Johor, Sabah and Sarawak had exceeded the warning level.

“The warning level is based on the average number of HFMD cases in the past five years and the value varies according to the number of cases in each state,” he said in a statement carried by Bernama.

Dr Noor Hisham said to date, 341 nurseries, kindergartens and pre- schools throughout the country had reported HFMD clusters at their premises, which accounted for 50 per cent of the cases reported this year.

It was reported that HFMD had forced the total closure of two schools – Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina ( SJKC) Shih Chung (Cawangan) and Sekolah Antarabangsa Tenby – in Penang for 10 days. HFMD is a disease caused by viruses Coxsackie A16 and Enterovirus 71, which are transmitted through direct contact with the nasal fluid, saliva, blisters and stool of the affected individual.