Hand, foot, and mouth disease: Symptoms and treatments

Hand, foot, and mouth disease is a viral illness that causes blisters on the hands, feet, and inside the mouth. It's usually mild in children, and you shouldn't worry about it too much. In any case, here is everything you need to know about it, along with the steps you can take to prevent it.

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What is hand, foot, and mouth disease?

Hand, foot, and mouth disease is a viral infection that causes blistering in the mouth, hands, and feet. It's not related to chickenpox or shingles.

It spreads through close contact with droplets from the nose and throat of an infected person or contaminated objects like toys or surfaces. It can also be spread by coughing and sneezing. Symptoms usually appear 3 to 6 days after exposure but can take up to 14 days to show up.

Handwashing with soap is one of the best ways to prevent spreading hand-foot-and-mouth disease because it kills viruses on your hands before they are able to enter your body through your eyes, nose, or mouth when you touch something contaminated with virus particles (germs).

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Who does hand, foot, and mouth disease affect?

Anyone can get hand, foot, and mouth disease. Children are more likely to get it than adults, but adults with the condition may not be as sick as children. Hand, foot, and mouth disease is most common in babies and children aged under 5 years old. It's less common in teenagers and adults.

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Symptoms of hand, foot, and mouth disease

Hand, foot, and mouth disease cause fever, sore throat, and mouth ulcers. A rash may develop on the palms and soles as well as in other areas of your body. The symptoms usually last about 2 weeks but can last up to 6 weeks in rare cases. More symptoms may include loss of appetite, fever, soreness, and fussiness in infants and toddlers.

A doctor will usually diagnose hand, foot, and mouth disease by looking at your symptoms. They may also do blood tests to confirm the diagnosis if needed.

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Treatment and prevention of hand, foot, and mouth disease

• Rest, fluids, and paracetamol
• Avoid scratching the rash
• Avoid spreading the virus to others by washing hands after touching the rash.

If your child has hand, foot, and mouth disease, they should not attend school until they are no longer infectious. Children with HFMD can return to school once there are no signs of a rash for 48 hours. If your child is showing symptoms of HFMD, you can help ease their discomfort by giving them paracetamol or ibuprofen regularly to relieve pain and fever. While there is no clear way to treat HFMD, you can take the necessary precautions to make sure your kids are protected from it. Make sure that they wash their hands regularly, avoid any kind of close contact, inculcate good hygiene manners in them, and disinfect common spaces.

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Conclusion

Hand, foot, and mouth disease is a highly contagious viral illness that affects children under the age of 5. The virus is easily spread from person to person through contact with an infected child's saliva or nasal secretions. Some people may develop only mild symptoms while others will have more severe cases that require hospitalization. Hand washing is the best way to prevent infection with hand, foot, and mouth disease. If you follow all the precautions, you have nothing to worry about!