Children are the most targeted groups for hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD). However, adults have an equal chance of being affected by the disease. This study aims to determine the relevant mixing pattern of HFMD among children and their contact with other age groups in Sarawak for year 2013. Homogeneous mixing is always assumed among the individuals of a population where all susceptibles are equally at risk of infection. In reality, the individual mixing pattern may depend on factors such as age, social activities, lifestyle, etc. When exploring the impact of control strategies especially those targeting specific groups of a population, we need to consider the effect of non-random (heterogeneous) mixing patterns. The components of rate at which two specific individuals come into effective contact (b) were estimated using the average numbers of infectious of children and adults in Sarawak population. We solved the equations for the rate of susceptible individuals getting infected (l)  for both children (young children and middle children) and adults equations in matrix structures to calculate the parameter. The rate at which an effective contact is made between two specific young children (for our case, young children below five years old) is very high. This result is supported by the number of HFMD notified casesthat have been reported by Sarawak State Health Department where young children aged five years old and below are the most infected individuals. Intervention methods should be aimed primarily to children of age below five years old in order to control the spread of HFMD.

hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD), Sarawak, mixing pattern, children, matrix.