1,517 HFMD Cases Logged Nationwide

Up to 1,517 cases of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) were recorded across the country from Jan. 1 to 18, according to the Department of Health.

- By RHODINA VILLANUEVA

The DOH said the figure is 23 percent higher than the 1,231 cases reported during the same period in 2024, and below the alert and epidemic thresholds based on a two-year average.

"There are 45 provinces, highly urbanized cities and independent cities across 13 regions that reported an increase in the number of cases in the past three to four weeks," the DOH said.

Earlier, the DOH reported 215 cases in Central Luzon and clustering of cases in a school in Malolos, Bulacan.