EIGHT suspected cases of enterovirus 71 have been found among children in Queen Mary Hospital, where a cluster of six cases in the past two weeks has prompted fears of an outbreak of the disease which has killed more than 50 infants in Taiwan.
A spokesman for the Hospital Authority said there were now 16 suspected cases under investigation in the 42 public hospitals.
Professor Yeung Chap-yung, head of Queen Mary's paediatrics department, said a six-year-old boy was 'extremely likely' to have enterovirus 71.
The boy, who had been admitted to the hospital two weeks ago, had developed severe symptoms in his central nervous system.
'His condition was quite serious when first admitted. He was unconscious and had convulsions,' Professor Yeung said.
The boy had been discharged on Tuesday but was brought back by his parents on Friday when they found his legs were partly paralysed.
Professor Yeung said he had a strong suspicion that the boy had the disease because his symptoms were in line with those of Taiwanese victims, except that he was older. The boy was in stable condition last night.