PETALING JAYA: The health ministry reported a 19% increase in hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) cases in the past week.
Health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said there were 18,602 cases reported compared to 15,548 the week before.
He said a total of 65,535 cases had been reported as at May 28, an increase of 27 times the number of cases in the same period last year when only 2,333 cases were reported.
Most of the cases (91%) were among children aged six and below, while 7% were among those aged between seven and 12, he said in a statement today.
The majority of the cases were in Selangor (28.3%), followed by Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya (12.3%), Perak (8.8%), Kelantan (7.5%), and Sabah (6.2%).
To date, a total of 1,505 outbreaks have been reported in the country with Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya recording the highest outbreak at 502 (33.4%), followed by Selangor at 172 (11.4%) and Perak at 168 (11.2%).
The majority of the outbreaks continued to occur in nurseries, kindergartens and preschools.
Noor Hisham urged these establishments to conduct health screenings at the entrances to prevent further transmission of the disease.
“Parents are also advised against bringing their children to places with a high risk of transmission such as public playgrounds,” he said, adding that the public were advised to report any HFMD cases to the ministry for action to be taken.
The three main types of viruses that cause HFMD in the country since the beginning of 2022 are Coxsackie A16 (CA16), Coxsackie A6 (CA6) and Enterovirus 71 (EV71).
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