OBJECTIVE: To study the prevalent characteristics in children with hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) in the Kunming area in 2010.MethodsThe clinical data of 13286 outpatient and inpatient children with HFMD in Kunming Children′s Hospital between January and December, 2010, including 8 death cases, 715 serious cases and 12563 non-serious cases, were retrospectively studied. RESULTS: Human enterovirus was detected in 8200 children (61.72%). Children infected with EV71 and CoxA16 accounted for 29.49% (2418/8200) and 53.21% (4363/8200), respectively. Seventy-five children (0.91%) were found to have a mixed infection of the two viruses. Other types of human enterovirus were detected in 1344 children (16.39%). There were significant differences in the total positive rate of human enterovirus in the four quarters of the year (P<0.01). The total positive rate in the second quarter represented the highest proportion (71.56%), and the number of patients was also highest, accounting for 52.94% of the total number of patients in the whole year. EV71 infection was common in the serious case group while CoxA16 was found to be the main pathogen in the non-serious case group. Serious cases were common in children under three years old. In the positive EV71 cases, the viral load of EV71 was not statistically different between the death cases, serious and non-serious cases. CONCLUSIONS: In 2010, children with HFMD in the Kunming area were mainly infected with CoxA16. Serious cases of HFMD were more common in those who were infected with EV71, and the majority of serious infections were suffered by children who were less than three years old. The viral load was not associated with disease severity. The highest morbidity rate was in the second quarter of the year.