An outbreak of hand-foot-mouth disease that has already claimed the life of a toddler in east China's Shandong Province can be contained if effective measures are taken, an epidemiologist has said.

Wang Xianjun, who is director of infectious disease control with the Shandong provincial center for disease control, said that epidemiological investigations have identified an above average number of cases of the disease in the city of Linyi this spring, but they have occurred sporadically.

Hand-foot-mouth disease, also known as coxsackievirus infection, is a common childhood illness whose symptoms are mouth ulcers, sores, fever and rashes. It is highly contagious and can be transmitted through saliva, air or skin.

It can be fatal if complications occur.

As of Friday, doctors had reported 293 cases in the city, including that of a 2-year-old girl who died of the illness.

Several people have since fully recovered and been discharged from hospital. The condition of the 106 children still in hospital is described as stable.

On April 27, a 2-year-old girl was taken to hospital after developing symptoms of fever and vomiting. Her condition worsened over the following two days.

Doctors confirmed she had contracted hand-foot-mouth disease, but were too late to save her.

She died in hospital on the evening of April 29.

After the girl's death, the city's health bureau carried out epidemiology research across the city, quarantining those infected by the disease and informing kindergartens and schools.

Local health departments have since launched a public awareness campaign and isolated those children with the disease.

They are also tightening monitoring of the outbreak and a daily reporting system has been launched in the city.

China recorded 2,477 cases of hand-food-mouth disease, including one fatality, in 2005 and 3,030 cases, including two fatalities, in 2006.

(China Daily, Xinhua May 16, 2007)