At least five children had died of hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) and another 9,863 cases had been reported as of Tuesday in central China's Henan Province, local authorities said.

A total of 503 cases out of the reported cases were severe, the provincial department of health said in a statement on Tuesday.

The peak period for the disease was from May to July, but it fell in March this year, said Hou Jiliu, director of the Disease Prevention and Control Center of Pingdingshan City, where two deaths and another 1,717 cases were reported.

The provincial health department has ordered local authorities to report severe HFMD cases on daily basis while organizing disease control experts to tour around the province to provide expertise support, said the statement.

Kindergartens and schools across Henan have been asked to step up health checks among children. Health education campaigns were being carried out in the province to raise public awareness on disease control.

HFMD is a common illness that mainly affects children under the age of 10. It usually starts with a slight fever followed by blisters and ulcers in the mouth and rashes on the hands and feet. It is spread through contact with saliva or feces of the infected.

(Xinhua News Agency March 24, 2010)