Characterization of enterovirus 71 and coxsackievirus A16 isolated in hand, foot, and mouth disease patients in Guangdong, 2010.

BACKGROUND: Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is an acute viral disease caused by human enteroviruses, especially human enterovirus 71 (HEV71) and coxsackievirus A16 (CVA16), and mainly affects infants and young children. After the outbreak in 2008 in Fuyang, China, HFMD was classified as a category C notifiable infectious disease by the Ministry of Health of China.

METHODS: In this study, we report the epidemiologic and clinical manifestations of HFMD in Guangdong Province, China in 2010, and characterize HEV71 and CVA16 isolated from clinical specimens.

RESULTS: Among the 542 HFMD patients, 495 (91.3%) were positive for enterovirus as detected by real-time reverse transcriptase PCR; 243 were positive for HEV71 (49.1%, 243/495) and 114 were positive for CVA16 (23.0%, 114/495). Most of the affected children were aged 5 years or under (93.7%, 508/542). Phylogenetic analyses of VP1 gene sequences showed that the HEV71 isolates belonged to C4a subgenotype, and CVA16 isolates belonged to B1 genotype.

CONCLUSIONS: Our results demonstrate that HEV71 and CVA16 are the primary causative agents responsible for HFMD in Guangdong Province, and their co-circulation poses a potential risk to public health.