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What Exactly is Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease?
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Posted on 3/15/2016 by Cynthia Pelley |
 Has your child ever had hand, foot, and mouth disease? If not - or if you've never heard of this illness - it can sound quite exotic and extremely serious. However, hand, foot, and mouth disease is actually a pretty common viral infection, and it most often affects young children under the age of 5. Not to be confused with hoof and mouth disease, hand, foot, and mouth is a condition that affects the whole body, but some of the symptoms might be detectable by your dentist.
Signs of Hand, Foot, and Mouth DiseaseThis illness typically begins when you notice that your child has a fever, and other flu-like symptoms like generally feeling unwell, sore throat, and lack of an appetite will follow. Within a day or two, your child will begin to develop sores on the mouth, appearing as small red spots. The hands and feet can also be affected, and these sores will generally become blisters. In the mouth, these spots will eventually appear as ulcers and can become quite uncomfortable.
Treatment and Prevention
Unfortunately, this disease is easily transmittable, even through something as simple as sharing a toy. Therefore, proper hand washing is essential in preventing the spread of the disease, and caregivers should be especially certain that they are washing their hands before changing diapers or when interacting with multiple children.
If your child has hand, foot, and mouth disease, he should be kept out of school or daycare until the symptoms have gone away, although the disease tends to be the most contagious during the first week.
There currently isn't a treatment available for hand, foot, and mouth disease, but some relief will be achieved with an over the counter fever and pain reducer, such as Tylenol. The best treatment is rest and a lot of fluids, and eventually, the illness will run its course.
Please contact us if you have any question about this disease and it effects on oral health! |
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