More than 100 children in Fujian Province have been infected with viral encephalitis since the beginning of May, local health authorities said Wednesday.

Hospitals in Anxi County have reported 200 such cases since June 1, of which 115 have been confirmed, said Wu Zhengxin, director of the county's health bureau.

An investigation by experts from the Ministry of Health and local disease control centers has indicated that the outbreak was caused by the ECHO30-type intestinal virus, according to Wu.

Infected local children were being treated at Mingxuan Hospital of Anxi County and were in stable condition, Wu said.

Another nine children, also from Anxi County, were diagnosed in hospitals in Xiamen City of Fujian and were receiving treatment there, Wu added.

The children, all under the age of 12, are from 75 villages of 14 townships in the county.

Children of three to seven years old account for 78 percent of the total, and 117 children, or 65 percent, are from the town of Hutou.

Local heath authorities are closely monitoring the disease to prevent its further spread, Wu said.

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