Epidemiological characteristics of infectious diseases in children in child care settings in Huairou district of Beijing, 2008–2017

Abstract

Objective To understand the epidemiological characteristics of infectious diseases reported in children in child care settings in Huairou district of Beijing from 2008 to 2017 and provide scientific evidence for the effective prevention and control of infectious diseases in children in child care settings and development of long-term prevention and control strategies of infectious diseases in child care settings. Methods Descriptive epidemiological method was used to analyze the incidence of infectious diseases in children in child care settings in Huairou from 2008 to 2017 by using the dada collected from Infectious Disease Reporting Information Management System and local CDC of Huairou. Results A total of 3 414 cases of 11 infectious diseases were reported in children in child care settings in Huairou from 2008 to 2017. The average annual reported incidence was 4 157.63/100 000, which was higher than the average level in China. No deaths caused by infectious diseases were reported. The annual reported incidence fluctuated, but the overall incidence showed a downward trend. The top five reported diseases were hand foot and mouth disease（HFMD）, influenza, other infectious diarrhea, varicella and mumps, accounting for 95.08% of the total reported cases. The first 3 townships reporting high incidences were Huairou, Beifang and Yanqi in urban-rural fringe. Conclusion Although the reported incidence of infectious diseases in child care settings in Huairou declined significantly in recent ten years, children in child care settings are still at high risk for infectious diseases. HFMD and influenza are the main infectious diseases affecting the health of children in child care settings. In urban-rural fringe with high incidence of infectious diseases, where the population structure is complex and more private child care settings exit, the supervision and health education about infectious disease prevention and control should be strengthened.