Bangkok’s prestigious Chulalongkorn University Demonstration Elementary School (Satit Chula School) was closed today through Friday after students were found to be infected with hand, foot and mouth disease.
Classes were suspended after an unspecified number of Grade 1 and 2 students were diagnosed with the disease, the school’s deputy director Chalermpol Daoruang told MCOT.
Classes are scheduled to resume as normal on Monday at the school, which has a total of 1,500 students in grades 1-6.
The virus usually affects infants and children under five years of age, however it can sometimes occur in adults. Symptoms include fatigue, fever, blister-like sores in the mouth and a skin rash, the United States Center for Disease Control (CDC) said.
The disease is spread from person to person by direct contact with the viruses that cause the disease, which are found in nose and throat secretions, fluid in blisters and stool of infected persons. The viruses can be spread by touching surfaces touched by infected persons, the CDC said.
The CDC said that washing hands often with soap and water, disinfecting dirty surfaces and items, and avoiding close contact with infected people can lower the risk of infection.
Treatment for infected people may consist of symptom-relieving measures such as fever-reducing or pain-relieving medications and mouthwashes. The CDC advises those concerned about symptoms to contact a healthcare provider.
