S. Korean baby dies of hand, foot and mouth disease

SEOUL, May 13 (Yonhap) -- A South Korean toddler has died of hand, foot and mouth
disease in the first confirmed death from enterovirus in the country, health
authorities said Wednesday.
The Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention said the 12-month-old from
the city of Suwon, south of Seoul, developed symptoms such as fever and rashes on
the hands and feet late last month before falling into a coma May 4 and dying the
next day.
The toddler was infected with almost the same type of enterovirus 71 (EV71) that
has hit mainland China, which has reported dozens of cases, according to the
center.
The incident is feared to reveal health authorities' failure to take sufficient
measures to prevent the disease from entering the country, given that the baby
had not been to China.
EV71 can cause a severe form of the disease characterized by high fever,
paralysis and meningitis. Hand, foot and mouth disease is relatively common among
children, but rarely fatal.
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