Preventing epidemics for children when entering the new school year

Complex epidemics in localities

At Hanoi Children's Hospital, the number of children coming for examination and hospitalization due to hand, foot and mouth disease has recently tended to increase, mainly in the group under 5 years old, especially children under 3 years old.

A 15-month-old baby boy was hospitalized with symptoms of fever, mouth ulcers, blisters in the palms of his hands and feet, accompanied by frequent hiccups, fussiness, restless sleep. A 23-month-old baby girl also had to be treated as an inpatient due to continuous high fever, poor appetite, many wounds in the mouth and suddenness, requiring monitoring for neurological complications.

According to Dr. Nguyen Thi Lan Anh - Department of Tropical Diseases, Hanoi Children's Hospital - most children develop the disease at a mild level. However, some cases can progress to severe form quite quickly with symptoms such as high fever that is difficult to lower, frequent chills, tremors in limbs, staggering gait, abnormal breathing, rapid pulse or consciousness disorders. Therefore, parents should not be subjective when they see that children have little skin damage. The severity of the disease does not completely depend on the number of blisters.

In Ho Chi Minh City, the number of cases of hand, foot and mouth disease is developing extremely complicatedly. According to information from the Ho Chi Minh City Center for Disease Control (HCDC), in the past 7 weeks, the number of cases has always fluctuated around the threshold of 1,000 cases/week. More worrying is the re-circulation of Enterovirus 71 (EV71) - a virus strain with particularly high virulence, capable of making the disease progress extremely quickly and causing dangerous complications if not detected in time.

High population density, large number of preschool children and students going to school, along with the migration of immigrants, make Ho Chi Minh City a hotspot difficult to control epidemics.

In Dak Lak, in the week from August 28 to September 3, 2026, the province recorded 521 cases of dengue fever, raising the total number of outbreaks to 252 (88 active outbreaks).

The situation in Vinh Long is also not very positive when the whole province recorded nearly 3,500 cases of hand, foot and mouth disease from the beginning of 2026, an increase of more than 2 times compared to the same period last year. The disease has appeared widely in 124/124 communes and wards with 140 outbreaks. In recent weeks, the province has recorded an average of about 110 new cases per week. Children under 5 years old are the most severely affected subjects, many cases are hospitalized in severe complications such as convulsions, prolonged high fever.

Why does the disease spread strongly when the new school year begins?

Doctor Truong Huu Khanh - Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Infectious Diseases Association and MSc. Dr. Le Hong Nga - Deputy Director of HCDC - said that the school environment (especially preschool and elementary school) has a very high risk of infection. Young children often have a habit of holding hands, sharing toys, close contact and living in closed classroom spaces. Hand, foot and mouth disease germs are not only transmitted through the digestive tract but also appear in the saliva or secretions of sick children. Flu and respiratory diseases spread quickly through droplets, while dengue fever transmitted through ticks develops strongly in stagnant water containers.

Through medical surveillance, HCDC and medical experts have pointed out many serious mistakes of parents, making the epidemic easily break out and progress severely. Some parents are slow to notify when children get sick, do not maintain washing hands with soap or return children to school too early when they have not recovered.

It is worth noting that self-purchasing medicine and using antibiotics when children have a fever or cough can delay the diagnosis of the cause. For hand, foot and mouth disease, parents should not be subjective when children just have blisters or mild rash because the disease can progress quickly.

Identification and handling of outbreaks

Faced with the increasing risk of hand, foot and mouth disease as preschool children enter the new school year, Vinh Long Department of Health requests grassroots units to zone and thoroughly handle outbreaks.

Preschools and private children's groups strengthen hygiene and disinfect classrooms, toys, and contact surfaces; at Mang Non Kindergarten, teachers guide children to wash their hands with soap before eating, after cleaning and playing.

Ms. Mac Hong Van - Vice Principal of Mang Non Kindergarten - said that the school integrates hand washing into songs and games to form hygiene habits for children. "Toys and classrooms are periodically disinfected, and the school also focuses on nutrition to improve children's resistance" - Ms. Van informed.

Ms. Dang Thi Tinh - Vice Principal of Soc Nau Kindergarten (An Hoi Tay ward, Ho Chi Minh City) - said that the school has about 300 children. To prevent hand, foot and mouth disease, teachers are required to regularly clean classrooms, supplies, toys; at the same time, guide children to wash their hands before eating, after going to the toilet, after playing with toys and when their hands are dirty.

According to Ms. Tinh, the risk of infection not only appears at school but can also come from children traveling and playing outside. Therefore, families need to proactively monitor their health and notify schools early when children show signs of suspected illness.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu - Deputy Director of Lam Dong Department of Education and Training - said that the department requests schools to strengthen propaganda and guidance on disease prevention, personal hygiene, hand washing, killing larvae and preventing mosquito bites. Schools regularly clean campuses, classrooms, kitchens, remove water-stained items and disinfect utensils, toys, and contact surfaces.