One more child has died of hand-foot-mouth disease on Wednesday in east China's Shandong Province, bringing the death toll in the province to 17, the local health authority said Thursday.

As of Wednesday, Heze City, the worst-hit area of Shandong has reported 5,155 cases of the disease, among which 3,614 have recovered, said the provincial health administration.

The administration did not provide further details about the latest victim.

All the 17 cities of the province have reported the disease. Heze has registered 14 deaths from the disease in the outbreak, Jining City registered two and Liaocheng one, since the first victim, a 20-month boy, died in Heze on March 22.

More than 80 experts have been sent to Heze to reinforce the medical service.

In central China's Henan Province, 18 children have died in the disease outbreak as of Monday with another 195 in severe conditions, said Henan Provincial Health Administration Tuesday.

East China's Zhejiang Province reported Wednesday its first death from the disease this year. A child in Cixi, Ningbo city died Sunday hours after he was admitted to hospital, according to Ningbo Municipal Health Bureau.

The disease, which is more common in summer and autumn, is not included in the routine reporting list of infectious diseases in China.

Hand-foot-mouth disease is a common childhood illness that mainly affects children under the age of 10. Symptoms include fever, sores in the mouth and a rash with blisters. It can sometimes be fatal if complications occur.

(Xinhua News Agency April 10, 2009)