Stručni rad
Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease in Children: Clinical Characteristics of an Outbreak in Novi Sad, Serbia
Sonja Prćić
orcid.org/0000-0002-4086-9996
; Pediatric Clinic, Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, Novi Sad, Serbia
Aleksandra Matić
; Pediatric Clinic, Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, Novi Sad, Serbia
Milan Matić
; University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Medicine, Novi Sad, Serbia
Anica Radulović
; Pediatric Clinic, Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, Novi Sad, Serbia
Zorica Gajinov
; University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Medicine, Novi Sad, Serbia
Sažetak
ABSTRACT Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is a relatively common mild viral
infection that usually affects young children, mainly occurring during the late spring,
early summer, and fall months. It is most commonly caused by members of the human
enterovirus (HEV) genus. Recently, HFMD has received renewed attention because of
evidence that this disease could have clinical, epidemiological, and etiological charac-
teristics different from those initially associated with it. HFMD may be associated with
neurologic or cardiopulmonary complications and can, rarely, lead to death. Our study
was a retrospective analysis on 83 children (<18 years of age) who were clinically diag-
nosed with HFMD at the Department of Dermatology of the Institute for Child and Youth
Health Care of Vojvodina, in a single, tertiary-care university hospital in Novi Sad, Vojvo-
dina province, Serbia, for the time period from January 2016 to December 2017. During
the study period, HFMD was diagnosed in 83 children. Our results suggest that the out-
break of HFMD occurred in younger children (average age 3.10 years), who seem to
be the most susceptible age group for HFMD infection. Taking into account that the
diagnosis of HFMD is usually clinical, we believe that it is important for health profes-
sionals to be well-informed about the clinical features and the course of the disease.
Good personal hygiene and the implementation of a surveillance system can help stop
the spread of the disease and prevent outbreaks.
Ključne riječi
hand; foot and north disease; clinical characteristics; outbreaks; Serbia
Hrčak ID:
311536
URI
Datum izdavanja:
16.3.2023.
Posjeta: 157 *