Twins usually do not like to be separated for long but that is exactly what six-year-old Amber had to endure last week. Her twin sister, Aamor, had to go and stay with their paternal grandparents because she had caught HFMD.

Their mother, Mrs Ann Tan, 35, says: 'If Amber comes down with it too, I'll have to take leave to care for her.'

Mrs Tan suspects that Aamor caught the virus in the children's play area of a large furniture chain here when her grandparents took her there two weekends ago.

She says: 'There were many children there. And the moment we heard that there were outbreaks of HFMD at childcare centres, we stopped sending her to class.'

Mrs Tan discovered Aamor was ill when she spotted ulcers in her mouth and spots on her arms about 10 days ago. She took her to a GP but Aamor was not diagnosed with HFMD.

When her daughter still complained of itchiness and pain and even displayed aggravated symptoms of blisters and rashes that night, MrsTan took her to another doctor who said she had HFMD.

This article was first published in Mind Your Body, The Straits Times on Apr 9, 2008.