Medical professionals are puzzling over why a hand, foot and mouth disease has killed so many children in a relatively small outbreak in Cambodia.

Outbreaks have occurred in Vietnam, China, Japan, Singapore and Australia with mostly nonfatal consequences, but in Cambodia the disease has killed most of the children afflicted.

— Posted by Alexander Reed Kelly

MedPage Today:

According to the World Health Organization, the outbreak killed 52 of 59 affected children, but Phnom Penh pediatrician Beat Richner, MD, who first called attention to the outbreak, reported 66 cases, with just two survivors.

Either way, the case fatality rate is markedly higher than health officials have seen in Vietnam, where just 20 deaths in 10 provinces have been reported.

Read more

Your support is crucial…

With an uncertain future and a new administration casting doubt on press freedoms, the danger is clear: The truth is at risk.

Now is the time to give. Your tax-deductible support allows us to dig deeper, delivering fearless investigative reporting and analysis that exposes what’s really happening — without compromise.

Stand with our courageous journalists. Donate today to protect a free press, uphold democracy and unearth untold stories.

SUPPORT TRUTHDIG