Post by Steve Gardner on May 5, 2008 9:48:27 GMT
Sounds dreadful. If it wasn't for the fact China has a shitty record when it comes to responding to outbreaks - SARS & Avian Flu - I'd be suspicious of the timing of this, given the Olympics an' all.
Source and full article: Healthzone
Source and full article: Healthzone
EV-71 has killed 22 children so far in fast-growing Fuyang
BEIJING – China's Health Ministry is ordering heightened efforts to stem the spread of infectious diseases, following an outbreak of a virus that has caused the deaths of 22 children in one city and is spreading.
The outbreak of enterovirus 71, a type of hand, foot and mouth disease that children are susceptible to, is another headache for China.
The communist government is preparing for a Beijing Olympics already tarnished by an uprising among Tibetans and an international torch relay disrupted by protests.
An order posted on the ministry's website says health bureaus and hospitals must step up efforts to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.
The increased vigilance is necessary "to guarantee the smooth staging of the Beijing Olympics and Paralympics and to ... preserve social stability," according to the order.
Prompting the government to act is an unusual jump in cases of the enterovirus, known as EV-71, in Fuyang, a fast-growing city in the rural heartland of central China.
As of early Saturday, 3,736 cases of EV-71 were reported in Fuyang's mainly rural outskirts, a rise of 415 in about 24 hours, health officials said. Besides the 22 deaths, 1,115 people remain hospitalized, 42 of them in serious or critical condition, said the health department of Anhui Province, where Fuyang is located.
