There were some 17,410 cases of hand-foot-mouth disease recorded in 62 out of 63 cities and provinces across Vietnam since the beginning of 2014, official data showed Thursday. Statistics by the General Department of Preventive Medicine under Vietnam's Ministry of Health said that the total number of infected cases in the four-month period went down 20 percent over the same period in 2013. However, several localities recorded a sharp increase in the number of new patients, including southern Ho Chi Minh City (up 28. 9 percent), Ba Ria-Vung Tau (34.4 percent) and Kon Tum (69.7 percent). The peak of the disease in Vietnam usually is seen in the March- May and September-December period, said the department on its website, adding that the country records some 100,000-150,000 cases of hand-foot-mouth disease annually with 30-40 fatalities. Hand-foot-mouth disease is a viral illness that usually affects children and sometimes occurs in adults.