State health and unity committee chairman Ling Tian Soon said apart from nurseries, eight outbreaks of HFMD were detected in private homes, three in kindergartens and one in a childcare centre.

He said a total of 1,237 HFMD cases had been reported for the period from Jan 1 to May 14 this year, a 12.8-fold increase, compared with the 97 cases recorded in the same period last year.

“In Johor, most cases of HFMD occur among children aged six and below with 1,127 cases (91%), followed by children aged seven to 12 with 94 cases (8%) while the rest of the cases involved those aged 13 and above.

“To date, seven active outbreaks of HFMD have been reported, where the highest number of active outbreaks is recorded in Kluang (five) and followed by Tangkak (two),” he told reporters after officiating the launch of the aedes Wolbachia mosquito project at the Kempas people’s housing project here, today.

However, Ling said the spread of HFMD in nurseries was still under control, and no closure order had been issued thus far.

“If children have symptoms of HFMD they are advised to undergo quarantine at home and seek treatment immediately,” Ling said.