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May 7, 2024 · Most children have mild symptoms for 7 to 10 days. Symptoms may include: Fever. Sore throat. Painful mouth sores that blister. Rash commonly found on the hands and feet. Complications from HFMD are rare. Keep Reading: Detailed HFMD Symptoms and When to See a Doctor. A rash on the palms and soles is a common sign of HFMD.
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Hand-foot-and-mouth disease may cause all of the following symptoms or only some of them. They include:
•Fever.
•Sore throat.
•Feeling sick.
•Painful, blister-like lesions on the tongue, gums and inside of the cheeks.
•A rash on the palms, soles and sometimes the buttocks. The rash is not itchy, but sometimes it has blisters. Depending on skin tone, the rash may appear red, white, gray, or only show as tiny bumps.
Hand-foot-and-mouth disease is usually a minor illness. It typically only causes fever and mild symptoms for a few days. Call your health care provider if your child is younger than six months, has a weakened immune system, or has mouth sores or a sore throat that makes it painful to drink fluids. Call your provider, too, if your child's symptoms don't improve after 10 days.
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The most common cause of hand-foot-and-mouth disease is infection from coxsackievirus 16. This coxsackievirus belongs to a group of viruses called nonpolio enteroviruses. Other types of enteroviruses also may cause hand-foot-and-mouth disease.
Most people get the coxsackievirus infection — and hand-foot-and-mouth disease — through the mouth. The illness spreads by person-to-person contact with an infected person's:
•Nose secretions or throat discharge
•Saliva
•Fluid from blisters
•Stool
Age is the main risk factor for hand-foot-and-mouth disease. The disease mostly affects children younger than ages 5 to 7 years. Children in child care settings are especially vulnerable because the infection spreads by person-to-person contact.
Hand-foot-mouth-disease typically affects young children, but anyone can get it.
The most common complication of hand-foot-and-mouth disease is dehydration. The illness can cause sores in the mouth and throat, making it painful to swallow.
Encourage your child to drink fluids during the illness. If children become too dehydrated, they may need intravenous (IV) fluids in the hospital.
Hand-foot-and-mouth disease is usually a minor illness. It usually only causes fever and mild symptoms for a few days. Sometimes the enterovirus that causes hand-foot-and-mouth disease enters the brain and causes serious complications:
•Viral meningitis. This is a rare infection and inflammation of the membranes (meninges) and cerebrospinal fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord.
You can lower your child's risk of hand-foot-and-mouth disease in many ways:
•Wash hands often. Wash your hands for at least 20 seconds. Be sure to wash your hands after using the toilet or changing a diaper. Also, wash your hands before preparing or eating food and after blowing your nose, sneezing or coughing. When soap and water aren't available, use hand sanitizer.
•Teach good hygiene. Show your children how to wash their hands and help them do it often. Show them how to practice overall good hygiene. Explain to them why it's best not to put their fingers, hands or any other objects in their mouths.
•Disinfect common areas. Clean high-traffic areas and surfaces first with soap and water. Next, clean with a diluted solution of chlorine bleach and water. If you're in a child care setting, follow a strict schedule of cleaning and disinfecting. The virus can live for days on surfaces in common areas, including on door knobs, and on shared items such as toys.
•Avoid close contact. Because hand-foot-and-mouth disease is highly contagious, people with the illness should limit their exposure to others while they have symptoms. Keep children with hand-foot-and-mouth disease out of their child care setting or school until fever is gone and mouth sores have healed. If you have the illness, stay home from work.
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•Mayo Clinic Q and A: Hand, foot and mouth disease
•Mayo Clinic Minute: Hand, foot and mouth disease in kids
While there is no specific cure for hand, foot and mouth disease, you can keep your child comfortable until the illness resolves by following these tips: Treat mouth pain so that your child drinks well and avoids dehydration. Acetaminophen (e.g., Tylenol ®) and ibuprofen (e.g., Motrin ®, Advil ®) are effective pain medicines.
Jan 30, 2024 · HFMD is sometimes confused with hoof and mouth disease, but this disease only happens in animals with hooves, like cows, sheep, and pigs. People can't get hoof and mouth disease. Hand, foot, and mouth disease symptoms. Symptoms of hand, foot, and mouth disease include: a rash on the hands, bottom of the feet, or both, that may be itchy.
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Jul 27, 2023 · Treatment in Children. Treatment in Adults. Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is a contagious illness common in children ages 5 and younger but can also impact adults. It’s caused by a group of viruses and is transmitted through close contact. Signs of HFMD include a fever and a painful rash of small blisters that appear on the hands, feet ...
- Cristina Mutchler
Despite its scary name, hand, foot, and mouth disease is a common, contagious illness caused by different viruses. It typically affects infants and children under age 5, but older kids and adults can catch it as well. What are the signs and symptoms? From the time the child is exposed to hand, foot, and mouth disease, it takes 3 to 6 days for ...
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Jun 14, 2023 · Hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) is a very contagious viral infection that causes a blister-like rash on your child’s hands and feet and painful sores in their mouth. The disease most often affects babies and children younger than 5 years old. HFMD is typically mild and usually clears up on its own within seven to 10 days.
