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@#Objective To analyze the epidemiological and etiological characteristics of hand,foot and mouth disease(HFMD)in Honghe Prefecture,Yunnan Province from 2013 to 2021,and provide basis for the development of prevention and control strategies for HFMD. Methods The case data of HFMD in Honghe Prefecture,Yunnan Province from 2013 to2021 were extracted from the“China Disease Prevention and Control Information System”. Descriptive epidemiological analysis method was used to analyze the incidence rate,severe rate,mortality rate. The nucleic acids of enterovirus-A71(EV-A71)and Coxsackievirus-A16(CV-A16)were detected by Real-time PCR in throat swabs,anal swabs or stool samples from 16 586 cases of HFMD,and the etiological characteristics were analyzed. Results A total of 78 356 cases of HFMD were reported from 2013 to 2021 in Honghe Prefecture,Yunnan Province,with 354 severe cases and 11 deaths. The average annual incidence rate of HFMD was 187. 47/100 000,with an upward trend from 2013 to 2015,and reached the first peak in 2015,which showed a downward trend from 2016 to 2017,while increased,reached the second peak,and then gradually decreased and tended to be flat in 2018. The severe and death rates have been declining since 2015. The age group of 0～7 years old showed high incidence,which accounted for 97. 85%(76 670/78 356)of the total incidence,and the average annual incidence of 1～2 years old group was the highest(4 397. 98/100 000). Generally,the time distribution showed a bimodal distribution,which were from April to July(summer peak)and from October to December(autumn peak),and the peak in summer was higher than that in autumn. The number of cases and severe cases in males were significantly higher than those in females（χ~2= 1 154. 436 and 5. 183,respectively,each P < 0. 05）. The average annual incidence and severe rate in the northern part of Honghe Prefecture were significantly higher than those in the southern part（χ~2= 18 573. 742 and 11. 036,respectively,each P < 0. 05）. Among 16 586 HFMD cases,EV-A71,CV-A16 and other enteroviruses accounted for 18. 71%,20. 38% and 60. 91% of cases,respectively,with significant difference（χ~2= 5 426. 965,P < 0. 05）. The dominant pathogen was EV-A71 in 2013 and 2015,while CV-A16 in 2014,and other enteroviruses became the dominant pathogens in 2016 — 2021. Conclusion The epidemic trend of HFMD in Honghe Prefecture,Yunnan Province from 2013 to 2021 was seasonal and regional,with children under the age of 7 being the key population,and other enteroviruses have become the dominant pathogens after 2016. HFMD prevention and control knowledge publicity should be strengthened,good hygiene habits should be advocated,and parents' awareness of disease prevention should be raised. EV-A71 vaccination should be strengthened to reduce EV-A71 infection and effectively prevent severe cases and deaths.
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@#Hand-foot-mouth disease(HFMD) is an infectious disease that seriously affects the health of infants and young children and has become a major public health problem worldwide,especially in the Asia-Pacific region.HFMD can be caused by a variety of enteroviruses,the most common being enterovirus 71(EV71) and Coxsackievirus A16(CVA16).In recent years,with the significant increase of HFMD caused by Coxsackievirus A6(CVA6) infection,CVA6 has gradually become the main pathogen of HFMD in many countries and regions around the world.CVA6 is not only susceptible to children,but also infects adults with normal immune function.The paper reviewed the CVA6 related etiology,epidemiology,clinical symptoms,laboratory diagnosis and development of vaccine.
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@#ObjectiveTo analyze the genome-wide characteristics of 17 strains of Coxsackievirus A6(CVA6)that cause hand,foot and mouth disease(HFMD)and herpangina(HA)in Yunnan Province in 2018,and understand the genetic differences between different pathogenic CVA6.MethodsA total of 1 909 stool samples clinically diagnosed as HFMD and HA in Kunming Children′s Hospital in 2018 were randomly selected for detection using enterovirus group A universal primers and screening of CVA6 positive samples. The CVA6 whole genome sequence was amplified with CVA6 whole genome primers,spliced by BioEdit splicting software,and analyzed for the whole genome characteristics by BioEdit,MEGA 7.0,Simplot,Heml 1.0 and Phyre2softwares.ResultsA total of 929 CVA6 positive samples were screened,and 17CVA6 complete gene sequences were obtained(9 of which were clinically diagnosed as HFMD and 8 were clinically diagnosed as HA). All 17 CVA6 strains were in type IV clade on the whole phylogenetic tree. No significant recombination occurred in HA and HFMD representative strains,while mutations occurred in non-structural protein 3D region. HFMD and HA representative strains showed differences in VP1 loci S597T,Q705L and Q663L. Online predictive analysis showed that the secondary structure of VP1 was consistent with that of CVA6 with no change.ConclusionThe 17 CVA6 strains causing HFMD and HA had high genomic homology,as well as nucleotide and amino acid differences,which may affect the replication and adaptability of CVA6.
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Objective To predict and analyze the physicochemical properties, structural characteristics, and antigenic epitopes of viral protein (VP) VP1 of Coxsackievirus A10 (CV-A10) by bioinformatics methods. Methods The physicochemical properties and structural characteristics of CV-A10 VP1 were predicted by ProtParam, SOPMA, SWISS-MODEL, PDBsum, and ProSA-web. The antigenic epitopes of CV-A10 VP1 were predicted and analyzed by DNAstar, ABCpred, Bepipred 2.0, ElliPro, DiscoTope-2.0, NetMHCpan-4.1, NetMHCIIpan-4.0, Consurf, VaxiJen v.2.0, AllerTOP v.2.0, ToxinPred2, and IEDB immunogenicity. Results Bioinformatics analysis showed that CV-A10 VP1 was a basic, unstable, and hydrophilic protein, of which the secondary structure mainly consisted of random coil. The analysis revealed that CV-A10 VP1 had multiple potential B and T cell antigenic epitopes as well as a dominant antigenic epitope based on the potential epitope. Conclusion CV-A10 VP1 has multiple potential sites that induce specific humoral and cellular immunity, providing important support for its experimental identification, molecular epidemiological studies, and vaccine development.
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@#ObjectiveTo analyse the coverage of inactivated enterovirus 71(EV71)vaccine and the impact on hand-foodmouth disease(HFMD)epidemiological and etiological changes in Jinshan District,Shanghai,and provide evidence for improving the prevention and control strategy of HFMD in this area.MethodsThe vaccination data of inactivated EV71vaccine from 2016 to 2019 was collected in Jinshan Immunization Information Management System of Shanghai to describe the vaccination characteristics;The data of HFMD cases in Jinshan District from 2013 to 2019 were extracted from Chinese Disease Prevention and Control Information System,and the surveillance etiological information of HFMD in the same period was obtained,which was compared for the differences of HFMD incidence and pathogen positive detection rate before and after vaccination.ResultsFrom November 2016 to December 2019,a total of 63 521 doses of inactivated EV71vaccine were applied in Jinshan District,with the first shot coverage of 22.57%,the full shot coverage of 21.05% and the two-dose completion coverage of 94.65%.There were significant differences in coverage between different years,months,current addresses,age groups and registers(P < 0.05).The highest coverage of first short was in 2018(33.45%),while full short in 2017(30.78%).More doses were applied during May to August,with highest coverage in 6 to 11 months old group and most doses in 1 year old group.The coverage of children in this city was higher than that of migrant children.There was no significant difference in the incidence of HFMD before and after vaccination(χ2= 0.427,P =0.513 ),while the incidence of severe disease,the positive detection rate of EV71 and the estimated incidence of HFMD infected with EV71 decreased significantly after vaccination(χ2= 15.312,41.431 and 432.342 respectively,each P <0.001).ConclusionVaccination with inactivated EV71 vaccine reduced the occurrence of HFMD EV71 infection and severe disease in Jinshan District,while the coverage was low,so it was necessary to pay attention to HFMD etiological changes to prevent other enterovirus infections.It is suggested to strengthen publicity and information technology to improve coverage,speed up the development of combined vaccine and provide more antibody protection.
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Objective:To analyze the etiological distribution and phylogenetic characteristics of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) in Qujing city of Yunnan Province in 2020.Methods:Stool samples were collected from HFMD cases in Qujing city in 2020 and virus RNA was extracted directly from treated stool suspensions. Virus VP4 gene sequences were firstly amplified using MD91/OL68-1 primer pairs and sequenced, then the virus serotypes were determined by BLAST search on the GenBank. Virus entire VP1 gene sequences were amplified and sequenced. Virus serotypes were identified online using Enterovirus Genotyping Tool Version 0.1. Sequences of reference virus genotypes/sub-genotypes were downloaded according to references. Phylogenetic trees were constructed by MEGA5.2 software and the genetic characteristics were analyzed.Results:A total of 47 strains of enteroviruses (EVs) were detected with a detection rate of 10.22% (47/460). The detected viruses were coxsackievirus A4 (CVA4, 0.65%, 3/460), CVA6 (7.83%, 36/460), CVA10 (0.87%, 4/460) and CVA16 (0.87%, 4/460). All were enterovirus species A (EVA), while other group viruses were not detected. The predominant virus was CVA6, accounting for 7.83% (36/460). EVA71 was not detected. CVA4 strains of C2 and C4 subgenotypes were co-circulating strains in Qujing city. CVA6 subgenotype D3a and CVA16 subgenotype B1a were also circulated in Qujing city. All CVA10 strains were in a separate lineage.Conclusions:Similar to the previous situation in China, the detection rates of EVA71 and CVA16 were very low, even zero. This study showed that CVA6 was the predominant virus, indicating a HFMD outbreak caused by CVA6 in Qujing city in 2020. The phylogenetic analysis showed CVA10 isolates belonged to a separate lineage, which might be unique to Qujing city. Laboratory and molecular epidemiological surveillance of non-EVA71 and non-CVA16 viruses, especially CVA6 and CVA10 should be strengthened in the future.
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Objective To investigate the vaccine efficacy (VE) of two doses of inactivated enterovirus 71 (EV71) vaccine on severe hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) in eligible children. Methods A retrospective case-control study was conducted in this project. A total of 109 patients with EV71 severe HFMD aged between 6 months to 5 years old who were admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) of Guangxi Maternity and Child Health Hospital from September 2016 to September 2020, and reported to the Chinese Disease Prevention and Control Information System were selected as the case group. According to 1:1 matching,109 healthy children aged between 6 months to 5 years old were selected as the control group. The vaccine efficacy of EV71 inactivated vaccine was calculated. Results The vaccination rate of the two doses of inactivated EV71 vaccine in the case group was significantly lower than that in the control group（9.17% to 54.13%，χ2=50.911, P<0.05；OR=0.086(95%CI:0.040-0.182)). The vaccine efficacy of two doses of inactivated EV71 vaccine was 91.44% (95% CI:81.8%-96%). Conclusion The inactivated EV71 vaccine has a good protective effect on hand, foot, and mouth disease caused by EV71. The vaccination of EV71 inactivated vaccine should be continuously promoted.
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Objective:To investigate the predominant types of enteroviruses and the characteristics of the VP1 gene of coxsackievirus A4 (CVA4) causing hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) in Yunnan Province from 2018 to 2020.Methods:Throat swab and stool samples were collected from HFMD cases and tested by real-time quantitative PCR for nucleic acid detection. The samples positive for enterovirus nucleic acids were used for viral isolation and sent to the National Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The VP1 gene of the isolated strains was sequenced and analyzed.Results:From 2018 to 2020, a total of 21 757 HFMD samples were collected, 16 457 (75.64%) of which were positive for enteroviruses. Altogether 533 strains were isolated from 4 114 positive samples that were selected for viral isolation, including 89 strains of enterovirus 71 (EVA71, 16.70%), 180 strains of coxsackievirus A16 (CVA16, 33.77%), 76 strains of CVA10 (14.26%), 118 strains of CVA6 (22.14%), 26 strains of CVA4 (4.88%) and 44 strains of other types (8.26%). HFMD occurred mainly in children under five years old with higher incidence in males than in females (1.35∶1). The incidence of HFMD reached the peak in the second and third quarters. In Yunnan Province, CVA4 mainly circulated in Qujing and Kunming, and was sporadically detected in Wenshan and Honghe. The VP1 gene was 915 bp in length. Twenty-six CVA4 strains belonged to C2 subtype, which were genetically far from the prototype strain AY421762-HighPoint. Mutations in the VP1 gene were found at multiple sites including 18, 23, 34, 102, 148, 164, 200, 262, 174, 275, 285 and 303. These strains showed 80.4%-99.0% homology in nucleotide sequence and 95.6%-99.0% in amino acid sequence. Nucleotide mutations were mostly synonymous mutations.Conclusions:CVA16, CVA6, EVA71 and CVA10 were the predominant enteroviruses causing HFMD in Yunnan Province from 2018 to 2020. The prevalence of CVA4 was also worthy of attention. CVA4 isolates in Yunnan Province belonged to C2 subtype, mainly circulating in the east and southeast of Yunnan Province and gradually becoming a cocirculating predominant strain. Long-term dynamic monitoring would be of great public health significance for improving the sensitivity of HFMD early warning.
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Objectives@#Hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) is a widespread infectious disease that causes a significant disease burden on society. To achieve early intervention and to prevent outbreaks of disease, we propose a novel warning model that can accurately predict the incidence of HFMD.@*Methods@#We propose a spatial-temporal graph convolutional network (STGCN) that combines spatial factors for surrounding cities with historical incidence over a certain time period to predict the future occurrence of HFMD in Guangdong and Shandong between 2011 and 2019. The 2011-2018 data served as the training and verification set, while data from 2019 served as the prediction set. Six important parameters were selected and verified in this model and the deviation was displayed by the root mean square error and the mean absolute error.@*Results@#As the first application using a STGCN for disease forecasting, we succeeded in accurately predicting the incidence of HFMD over a 12-week period at the prefecture level, especially for cities of significant concern.@*Conclusions@#This model provides a novel approach for infectious disease prediction and may help health administrative departments implement effective control measures up to 3 months in advance, which may significantly reduce the morbidity associated with HFMD in the future.
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Humans , China/epidemiology , Cities/epidemiology , Data Visualization , Disease Outbreaks/statistics & numerical data , Forecasting/methods , Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease/prevention & control , Incidence , Neural Networks, Computer , Reproducibility of Results , Spatio-Temporal Analysis , Time FactorsABSTRACT
@#Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is a common childhood disease caused by enteroviruses. In 2018, a HFMD outbreak in Malaysia affected over 76,000 children. In this study, we used RT-qPCR and CODEHOP PCR to detect the causative agents in 89 clinically diagnosed HFMD patients in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. Most (62.9%) of the children were below 3 years old. PCR with either assay detected enteroviruses in 84.2% (75/89) and CODEHOP PCR successfully typed 66.7% (50/75) of the enteroviruses. Sequencing of CODEHOP amplicons showed co-circulation of multiple enteroviruses with coxsackievirus A6 (CV-A6) and A16 as the predominant serotypes, but not the neurovirulent enterovirus A71. CV-A6 infection was more common in children less than 12 months old (p=0.01) and was more likely to cause vesicles in the gluteal area (p=0.01) compared to other enteroviruses. Establishing a robust identification method during HFMD outbreaks is important for patient management and public health responses.
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Objective To analyze the epidemic characteristics of the hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) in four years before and after EV71 vaccine inoculation, and to provide a basis for better EV71 vaccination and prevention and control of HFMD. Methods The descriptive epidemiology method was used to analyze the monitoring data of HFMD from 2013 to 2020 and EV71 vaccination from 2017 to 2020 in Xinwu District of Wuxi City. Results A total of 9 589 HFMD cases including 104 severe cases (accounting for 1.08%) were reported in four years before EV71 vaccination, and the reported average annual incidence rate was 431.15/100 000. A total of 7 396 HFMD cases including 21 severe cases (accounting for 0.28%) were reported in four years after vaccine inoculation, and the reported average annual incidence rate was 325.28/100,000. Annual incidence rate and severe illness rate decreased significantly before and after vaccine inoculation. The HFMD incidences displayed two epidemic peaks, from May to June and from October to November. The three streets with the highest average annual incidence were Jiangxi, Meicun, and Shuofang. The HFMD cases were mainly children under 5 years old, and there were more men than women. A total of 394 samples were sent for examination from 2013-2020, and 231 were positive, with a total positive rate of 58.63%. There were significant changes in the etiological composition before and after vaccine inoculation. The composition of EV71 virus decreased significantly (χ2=69.70, P2=22.35, P<0. 05). From 2017 to 2020, a total of 12 472 people were inoculated with EV71 vaccine in Xinwu District of Wuxi City, with estimated annual vaccination rates of 3.78%, 10.96%, 8.40% and 7.63%, respectively. Conclusion There is no significant change in time, region and population distribution of HFMD before and after EV71 vaccination in Xinwu District of Wuxi City, but the annual incidence rate and severe illness rate show a decreasing trend, and the dominant intestinal pathogens have changed. It is suggested to strengthen the use of EV71 vaccine and the development of multivalent HFMD-related vaccine.
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Objective:To investigate the prevention and control effect of hand， foot and mouth disease （HFMD） after entervirus （EV） 71 vaccine immunization， evaluate economic benefit of EV71 vaccine immunization，and provide evidence for developing HFMD vaccine immunization strategies． Methods:Descriptive analysis was performed on comparing epidemiological characteristics of HFMD before and after EV71 vaccine immunization. Cost-benefit analysis was conducted， in which disease burden of HFMD， coverage of EV71 vaccine immunization， and costs of EV71 vaccine immunization were collected to evaluate the benefit-cost ratio （BCR）. Results:The average incidence of HFMD was 202.17/10 million from 2017 to 2018， which decreased by 43.8% compared with the average of the previous six years（χ2 = 395.49，P<0.05）； the average proportion of severe case decreased by 88.7%（χ2=40.84，P<0.05）. The prevalence of EV71 in the outpatients from 2017 to 2018 were 2.56%（18/704）， which decreased by 88.7% compared with the previous six years（χ2=124.74，P<0.05）. The severe and fatal cases were mainly caused by EV71 （84.5% -100.0%）. The average cost of EV 1 vaccine immunization was RMB 526， which was approximately 30.2% of the average cost of HFMD diagnosis and treatment. Coverage of EV71 vaccine was 40.12% from 2017 to 2018 in Minhang. The total costs of EV71 vaccination in Minghang from 2016 to 2018 was 174.89 million RMB. It was estimated that EV71 vaccination strategies had prevented 2 491 outpatients， 232 ordinary inpatients and 54 severe cases. The BCR was determined to be 0.35∶1. Conclusion:EV71 vaccine may reduce the incidence of HFMD， the incidence of severe cases， and the disease burden. It is highly recommended to reduce the immunization costs to increase the immunization coverage.
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Enterovirus 71 (EV71) infection is more likely to cause hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) in children, which can lead to neurogenic complications and higher mortality. As a commonly used clinical medicine, Reduning injection (RDN) helps to shorten the symptoms of patients with HFMD and facilitate the early recovery of children. However, the regulatory mechanism of RDN on the HFMD immune system disorder caused by EV71 remains to be discussed. This study collected detailed treatment data of 56 children with HFMD who entered the affiliated Children's Hospital of Nanjing Medical University during 2019. Retrospective analysis of clinical data showed that the symptoms of the RDN treatment group were improved compared with the untreated group. To explore its mechanism, the relevant detection indicators were detected by flow cytometry, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and real-time quantitative PCR. It was found that the number and function of innate immune (ILCs) and adaptive immunity (Th1, Th2 and secreted cytokines) were reduced, suggesting that RDN plays a role by regulating cellular immunity. The in vitro differentiation inhibition test further confirmed that RDN affected Th1 differentiation by inhibiting the expression of transcription factors on the basis of Th1 cell differentiation in vitro.
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@#Objective To analyze the epidemic situation and characteristics of spatial autocorrelation and spatiotemporal regular of hand，foot and mouth disease( HFMD) in Yunnan Province during the period from 2014 to 2018，thus to provide theoretical basis for HFMD prevention and control． Methods Descriptive epidemiologic method was used to analyze the epidemic situation of HFMD，spatial autocorrela- tion was used to analyze the spatial cluster aggregation，and discrete Possion model in spatio－temporal in scan was used to detect HFMD＇s spatio－temporal clustering condition． Ｒesults The incidence of HFMD in Yunnan Province had been risen rapidly during the past 5 years． Cases mainly occurred among the group of male，0－4 years old group and scattered children． The predominant pathogen had changed，Other enterovir- us gradually replaced enterovirus 71( EV71) to be the predominant． HFMD cases and pathogen showed sig- nificant spatial clustering aggregation，HFMD cases hot spots mainly concentrated in the central and south－ central part of Yunnan Province． The amount of EV71 cases hot spots increased gradually，and the hot spot areas augmented and extended to the central and south－central part of Yunnan Province． There was obvious spatial－temporal aggregation of HFMD，annual scan results detected 3 first－level cluster areas and 1 second －level cluster area． Clustering time was mainly concentrated in April to October of each year． Conclusions Distribution characteristics of HFMD among people in Yunnan Province did not change significantly during the period from 2014 to 2018，while the proportion of pathogenic spectrum changed significantly． The key areas of HFMD control and prevention were still in the central and central－south part of Yunnan Province，while the aggregation and break of HFMD in these areas from April to October should be concerned．
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Objective@#To establish an evaluation index system for health education of hand,foot and mouth disease（HFMD）in nursery children by Delphi method. @*Methods@#After referring to the relevant literature,an initial health education index system for HFMD of nursery children was established,including four first-level indicators,twelve second-level indicators and forty-six third-level indicators. Two rounds of expert consultation were conducted according to Delphi method. The enthusiasm of experts was evaluated by response rate,and the authority of experts was evaluated by authority and variation coefficient. The consultation questionnaire in the second round was based on the results of the first round and was scored again in the same way. Then the evaluation index system of HFMD health education for nursery children was finally determined.@*Results@#Thirteen experts participated in two rounds of consultation,including four aged 40-49 years and nine aged 50-59 years;two of deputy senior title and eleven of senior title;one worked in the health administration department,six in the CDC,five in health education institutions and one in kindergarten. The two rounds of expert consultation were carried out effectively within the time set and the response rate reached 100%. In the first round,the judgment coefficient,familiarity coefficient and authority coefficient were 0.92±0.06,0.85±0.12 and 0.88±0.06,respectively. One first-level indicator,two second-level indicators and twelve third-level indicators were added,seven third-level indicators were deleted,and the contents of one second-level indicator and ten third-level indicators were improved in the first round. In the second round,the judgment coefficient,familiarity coefficient and authority coefficient were 0.95±0.07,0.88±0.10 and 0.91±0.06,respectively. The coordination coefficients of the first-,second- and third-level indicators in the second round were 0.170,0.166 and 0.283,respectively,and the coefficients of variation were all less than 0.25. After two rounds of discussion,five first-level indicators,fourteen second-level indicators and fifty-two third-level indicators were finally established as the evaluation index system of HFMD health education for nursery children. @*Conclusion@#The evaluation index system of HFMD health education for nursery children established by Delphi method has high authority and practicability,and it can be used to comprehensively evaluate the effects of HFMD health education on nursery children.
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Objective To predict the monthly incidence of hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) in China by using autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model and provide evidence for prevention and control of HFMD. Methods The monthly incidence data of HFMD in China from 2008 to 2016 were collected from the Public Health Science data Center. The incidence database was established by Excel 2007 and graphed. SAS 9.1 was used to construct the ARIMA model, based on the data of the monthly reported incidence of HFMD in China from January 2008 to December 2015, and then the data in 2016 were used to verify the predicted results. The monthly incidence in 2017 was predicted in the same way.The difference was statistically significant when P<0.05. Result The model predicting monthly incidence of HFMD in China is ARIMA ((12), 2, 0) sparse coefficient and residuals is white noise. The parameters were as follows: moted mean squared error=3.6490, mean absolute error=2.62, mean absolute percentage error=28.24%. Conclusion The sparse coefficient model could well simulate the trend of HFMD case in time series, which has good reference of early warning and prevention of HFMD.
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Abstract@#Introduction: Hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) is reported as endemic and rank in the third place among other communicable diseases in Malaysia. HFMD outbreak is often found in nurseries and playgroups where children have lots of close contacts with other children. The objective of study is to study the knowledge, attitude and practice of HFMD among nursery governesses of nurseries at public universities and residential areas. Methods: A total of 102 nursery governesses were selected as respondents which include 83 respondents from public university while 26 respondents from residential areas in Klang Valley. Questionnaires were administered to determine socio-demographic, knowledge, attitude and practice on HFMD among the study population. Results: The result indicated that no significance different between knowledge, attitude and practice between two groups (Z = -0.321, p > 0.005; Z = -1.196, p > 0.005; Z = -1.155, p > 0.005) respectively. Furthermore, there was no association between knowledge with practice (p = 0.581, p > 0.005) and attitude with practice (p = 0.298, p > 0.005). Thus, nursery governesses in this study perceived moderate knowledge and attitude level. However for practice, public universities showed better application of practice if compared to residential areas. Conclusion: Hence, it is recommended for the nursery governesses to attend program such as health talk on HFMD occasionally, as it can be efficiently induce positive outcome.
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Objective To understand the periodicity of the incidence of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) in representative provinces from different climatic zones in China, and to analyze the seasonality and the factors influencing the HFMD transmission rate, to provide a scientific reference for the prevention and treatment of HFMD. Methods Five climate-representative provinces including Hainan, Hunan, Shandong, Qinghai and Inner Mongolia were selected as research objects. Wavelet analysis was used to analyze the cyclic pattern of HFMD incidence. Time series susceptible infected recovered (TSIR) model was established to examine the HFMD transmission rate of the five provinces and of the entire country. The parameters in the TSIR model were estimated by markov chain monte carlo (MCMC). Linear regression model was used to analyze the effects of climate factors, school terms and the Spring Festival travel rush on the transmission rate of HFMD. Results (1) HFMD incidence in the provinces and the entire country exhibited annual or semi-annual cycles and the transmission rates in all provinces showed obvious seasonality with similar patterns. February to May was the peak period of HFMD transmission rate. (2) The transmission rate of HFMD was affected by the climate or the contact rate, depending on which factor was dominant. Conclusions The transmission rate of HFMD had obvious seasonality, which had increased significantly in February, and it was necessary to strengthen its prevention and control during the Spring Festival.
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Objective To analyze the biological characteristics of clinical isolates of coxsackievir-us A6 (CVA6), a pathogen of hand,foot and mouth disease (HFMD), and to provide reference for vaccine development. Methods CVA6 strains were isolated from 21 stool and throat swab specimens of patients with HFMD in Yunnan Province and then identified. Their growth characteristics, plaque morphology and virulence to suckling mice were analyzed. Results Five CVA6 strains, named CVA6-129, CVA6-113, CVA6-57, CVA6-94 and CVA6-162, were isolated and all belonged to D3 subtype. Only the CVA6-129 strain could proliferate rapidly in Vero and KMB17 cells and the proliferation peaked 30 h after inoculation. The infectious titer of the CVA6-129 strain was 7. 54 lgCCID50 (50％ cell culture infective dose) / ml in KMB17 cells. Different morphologies of plaques were formed by the CVA6-129 strain in Vero and KMB17 cells at the same time points, which were small and round with clear edges in Vero cells, and large and irregular with blurry edges in KMB17 cells. Suckling mice were susceptible to CVA6 via intramuscular and intraperito-neal injection. The most common symptoms in infected suckling mice were reduced mobility, hind limb pa-ralysis and quadriplegia. CVA6 infection could result in death in severe cases. Conclusions This study isolated five CVA6 strains from a number of clinical samples of suspected HFMD cases, of which the CVA6-129 strain showed potential as a vaccine candidate.
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Introduction: During which HFMD epidemic has kept on recurring worldwide, effective vaccine and specific treatment for HFMD are still not available, calling attention to on preventive practices as the mainstay of the management. Therefore, it is timely to renew the assessment on maternal preventive practices and its predictors in Klang District, Selangor wherein the endemicity and upsurge of HFMD cases has been demonstrated. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from 1st April 2017 until 15th May 2015 among mothers of Community Development Department (KEMAS) preschool children in Klang District. Respondents were selected based on probability proportional to size sampling, whereas data collection was facilitated by validated, and reliable self-administered questionnaire, that examine on the preventive practices towards HFMD. Results: A total of 353 mothers responded to questionnaire, resulting response rate of 80.2%. Most of the respondent were housewife, married and obtained educational level up to secondary school. Insufficient knowledge score (13.61 ± 4.04) was demonstrated, with health belief highlighted on low mean score for perceived severity and perceived barrier, which was 8.30(SD=1.36) and 7.80(SD=2.14) respectively. Simple linear regression revealed significant linear relationship between preventive practices with knowledge and all health belief subscales. Hierarchical multiple linear regression reported predictors of preventive practices towards HFMD, which include knowledge, (perceived susceptibility)2, perceived severity, and perceived barrier, with the group of variables was significantly predicting the (preventive practice)3 and accounted for 13.1% variance in the (preventive practices)3 (F[5,347]=11.588, p value=<0.001, adjusted R2=0.131). Conclusion: The four predictors derived from this study should be given further attention in planning for future HFMD intervention