Two Beijing kindergartens were temporarily closed yesterday due tofears of the hand, foot and mouth disease that has already killed atleast 26 children in China, Reutersreported. The number of infected children in the kindergartens has notbeen confirmed, and the sick are still being examined, the BeijingCenter for Disease Control and Prevention said. Hand, foot and mouthdisease is a common illness in children and infants and outbreaks occurregularly in China. Recent outbreaks have been fatal, usually whenlinked to enterovirus 71 (EV71), which causes a more potent form of thedisease. APreported that the number of children infected with the disease is now12,164 nationwide. Most of the deaths have occurred in Anhui andGuangdong provinces. Outbreaks have now been reported in Yunnan, Jilinand Hainan provinces. AFPreported that 10 doctors and officials have been punished for handlingpatients infected with the virus improperly. Two doctors at a hospitalin Fuyang city, where 22 people died from EV71, were given demerits formerely giving a patient an intravenous drip without conducting athorough examination.