The Department of Health has confirmed another case of enterovirus-71 infection, bringing this year's total to two.

A five-year-old boy was diagnosed with hand-foot-mouth disease and admitted to Yan Chai Hospital on March 31.

He was referred to Princess Margaret Hospital on April 2, recovered without event and was discharged on April 4. 

His family members had no symptoms of the disease, and he had not attended kindergarten since he first felt unwell on March 31. Health department staff inspected the kindergarten and found no abnormal absences due to illness among the students.

The first confirmed EV-71 case this year involved a four-year-old boy who developed symptoms of hand-foot-mouth disease in January and recovered without hospitalisation.

Maintain personal hygiene to prevent infection

The department's Consultant Dr Thomas Tsang called on members of the public to maintain personal hygiene to prevent enterovirus infections.

Dr Tsang said the department has set up surveillance systems to monitor hand-foot-mouth disease and enteroviruses, including EV-71.     

EV-71 is transmitted through the fecal-oral route but the virus can also be spread through droplets or direct contact with respiratory secretions. The best prevention is to maintain good personal hygiene.

Symptoms of EV-71 infections

Children with EV-71 infections may develop a fever, mouth ulcers and a rash on their arms and legs. The disease is usually self-limiting in the majority of cases.  Severe forms of EV-71 infection affecting the brain and the heart can occur but are rare.

There was one confirmed EV-71 cases in 2003 and five in 2002. All patients made a full recovery.

Although reported cases of EV-71 have remained at a low level in recent years, Dr Tsang called on members of the public to take appropriate measures to prevent enterovirus infection. He explained that there are sometimes more cases of enterovirus infections in the summer months.