First Report of Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease (HFMD) Outbreak in the West Bank, Palestine: Molecular Characterization of Coxsackievirus A16 (CV-A16).

Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is a mild self-limited childhood infectious disease caused by a variety of enteroviruses (EVs). To investigate the molecular epidemiology of EVs associated with HFMD and their clinical presentation during the HFMD outbreak that occurred in the Jenin district, Palestine, from May to August 2024. Forty-four (44) throat and vesicular swabs were tested for enteroviral infections using two RT-PCR assays targeting both the 5'NTR and the VP1-2A regions of the enteroviral genome for the diagnosis and genotyping.