Hand Foot and Mouth Disease (HFMD) is a common viral infection of the mouth and respiratory tract. It’s caused by viruses that belong to the Enterovirus D68 family and typically affects infants, children, teenagers and adults. HFMD in adults is highly contagious and spreads easily from person to person by direct contact with an infected person or object (e.g., toys, clothing) or indirect contact through the air via droplets from an infected person coughing or sneezing.
Hand Foot, and Mouth Disease (HFMD)
Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is a viral illness that affects infants and children. The illness is caused by coxsackievirus A16, enterovirus 71, and other enteroviruses.
HFMD in adults usually begins with fever, general discomfort or pain in the digestive tract, and throat irritation; followed by a rash on hands, feet, and the mouth which may have sores that can bleed easily. In severe cases, there can be a high fever for more than two days along with difficulty breathing due to swelling around the face/lips area.
HFMD tends to last up to 10 days but most people recover within seven days without any serious consequences such as bone marrow suppression (reduced production of blood cells) or fatal complications such as encephalitis (swelling of brain).
Hand Foot and Mouth Disease Causes
Hand, foot and mouth disease is caused by a virus called coxsackievirus A16. The virus infects the oral cavity, gastrointestinal tract, or both. It can be spread through direct contact with an infected person or contaminated objects like towels or toys.
HFMD in adults is not spread through the air; it must be transmitted via an infected person’s saliva that enters another person’s mouth (either directly or indirectly through contaminated objects). This is why hand washing is so important to prevent spreading the disease!
It’s also important to note that HFMD cannot be passed from animals to humans—or vice versa.
Hand Foot and Mouth Disease Symptoms
Hand, foot, and mouth disease is a viral infection that causes sores to appear on the hands, feet, and inside of the mouth. Symptoms usually start between two days and one week after exposure to the virus.
The most common symptoms of hand, foot, and mouth disease are fever (often high), painful sores in your mouth or on your tongue that may blister or ooze fluid, vomiting, and diarrhea (sometimes bloody). You may also have red spots on your palms or soles of your feet. Red spots on the buttocks can be a sign of this illness as well.
Transmission of HFMD in adults
Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease (HFMD) is a viral infection that causes painful sores in the mouth, palms and feet. It’s most commonly spread through contact with an infected person or contaminated objects like towels, toys and other surfaces.
HFMD in adults isn’t spread by food or water. It also can’t be contracted from eating eggs that are passed through the stool of infected individuals; however, it is possible to get HFMD if you touch your eyes after handling raw chicken eggs or any other uncooked foods handled by a sick person who has the virus on their hands.
There’s no evidence to suggest that mosquitoes transmit HFMD in adults. Likewise, pets don’t spread this disease either—unless they have been in contact with human feces (stool). Pets are considered low risk for carrying HFMD as they cannot develop symptoms of the disease even if they come into contact with someone who has it.
Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease Treatment
- Medications — antiviral medications are used to treat the illness. Your doctor may prescribe an antiviral medication to help relieve symptoms and make you feel better. For example, if you have palm, foot and mouth disease caused by coxsackievirus A16 (CVA16), your doctor might prescribe a drug called ribavirin.
- Home remedies — home remedies can ease some of the pain associated with hand-foot-and-mouth disease. Gargling with salt water or using over-the-counter oral analgesics like acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil) can help ease discomfort from sore throats that sometimes accompany this condition. Applying cool compresses to inflamed areas also helps soothe pain during an outbreak of hand foot and mouth disease as well as relieves swelling around blisters on hands and feet caused by this viral infection.
Hand Foot and Mouth Disease Prevention
- Wash your hands frequently with soap and water. Hands can be a source of infection for both you and others. If possible, use an alcohol-based sanitizer when soap and water aren’t available.
- Avoid contact with other people’s saliva when they are sick. It is best to avoid kissing others until the blisters have healed or been treated.
- Avoid sharing food and drinks during an outbreak in your community to prevent spreading the virus through saliva on items such as cups, utensils, etc. If children are attending daycare centers or preschools then it is especially important that they follow these guidelines for avoiding the spread of this disease among young children who may not be aware yet of how serious this type of condition can be.
- Avoid touching or picking at any lesions on your skin during an outbreak in your community because doing so can cause additional lesions that may become infected by other germs present around us every day such as bacteria that live naturally on our bodies.
- Also, try not to touch any animals while there is an outbreak going on nearby since they could easily carry these same viruses without showing symptoms themselves which means they could pass them along unknowingly to anyone coming into contact with them (which includes humans like ourselves).
Conclusion
Hand, foot and mouth disease is a common childhood illness that can cause fever, sore throat, and a rash on the palms of the hands or soles of the feet. It usually resolves within one week but can last as long as 10 days. There are no specific treatment options for hand, foot and mouth disease.
The most important thing you can do is care for your child by making sure they drink plenty of water to replace fluids lost through vomiting or diarrhea, eat soft foods that are easy to digest such as yogurt or pudding (without nuts), and provide comfort by holding them when they’re having trouble sleeping due to pain or discomfort in their mouth due to sores; encourage them not only get plenty rest but also engage in activities with siblings or friends outside so playing outdoors will help keep them active which means less time sitting around indoors where germs spread easily.
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