Published on Jul 19, 2012 by NTDTV
An empty schoolyard in Cambodia.
Government officials have shut down all of its kindergartens and primary schools to prevent the spread of a deadly virus that causes hand, foot and mouth disease.
The virus has claimed the lives of 55 children since April, according to the World Health Organisation.
Most deaths occurred within 24 hours of being admitted to the hospital, affecting infants from three months old to children of 11.
With the closures in force, this newspaper seller in Phnom Penh has her children at work with her.
She says that she and many other parents agree with the decision to close schools, seeing it as a good measure to prevent the spread of the deadly virus.
Authorities said the closures would be in force for 10 weeks.
e has also been reported in a handful of other states. Although many cases were in areas where the habitat supports rodents and fleas, the researchers also found cases occurring in more upper-class neighborhoods. In the 1980s, most cases occurred where housing conditions were poor, but more recently cases have been reported in affluent areas of Santa Fe and Albuquerque, the investigators found. “The shift from poorer to more affluent regions of New Mexico was a surprise, and suggests that homeowners in these newly developed areas should be educated about the risks of plague,” Schotthoefer said. Schotthoefer noted that these more affluent areas where plague occurred were regions where new housing developments had been built in habitats that support the wild reservoirs of plague, which include ground squirrels and wood rats. Bubonic plague starts with painful swellings (buboes) of the lymph nodes, which appear in the armpits, legs, neck or groin. Buboes are at first a red color, then they turn a dark purple color, or black. Pneumonic plague starts by infecting the lungs. Other symptoms include a very high fever, delirium, vomiting, muscle pains, bleeding in the lungs and disorientation. In the 14th century, a plague called the 
