Investigation on economical burden and clinic situation with hand-foot-mouth cases in Hongkou District of Shanghai City

Objective To investigate the economic burden and visit status with hand-foot-mouth disease(HFMD) in Hongkou District for the reference of the government and related departments in their decision making.Methods Questionnaire survey was conducted on HFMD cases from China information system for disease control and prevention who lived in Hongkou District in 2012.Results A total of 466 mild cases of HFMD were surveyed. The mean cost on HFMD for outpatients and inpatients were 732.9 and 6 188 yuan respectively. The overall direct economic cost on HFMD was 1.06 million yuan in Hongkou District in 2012,in which the direct medical cost was 1.02 million yuan,and direct non-medical cost was 37 000 yuan.The child patients preferred children's hospitals to general hospitals to look for help, but the time consumed and the cost on visit and transportation to children's hospitals were both more than those to general hospitals.Conclusion The economical burden with HFMD is heavy both for society and patients.If part of mild cases of HFMD could be diverted from children's hospitals to general hospitals, then the overcrowding situation in children's hospitals could be alleviated. Besides,antibiotics were abused in the treatment of HFMD, so the use of antibiotics must be supervised strictly.