Suining, Sichuan Province, China, March 27, 2009--A kindergartener's mouth is disinfected as part of an effort to fight hand, foot, and mouth disease, a viral illness among children that usually causes blister-like bumps in the mouth and often a skin rash.

Nearly 42,000 cases of the disease have been reported in China in the last three months. Eighteen of those cases have been fatal, according to China's Ministry of Health.

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