2023-10-30 17:09:43
An infectious virus that causes “disease of the face, hands and feet”
Recently, news has spread across social media platforms regarding the spread of “hand, foot, and mouth disease” among school students in the holy city of Mecca, and in a number of neighboring countries, raising concerns among parents regarding the health of their children. The Saudi Ministry of Health reacted to this news and explained, reassuring everyone, the truth regarding this disease, its causes, methods of infection, its implications for public health, and how to protect ourselves and our children from it. She stressed that hand, foot and mouth disease is a mild viral infection and there is no need for concern, and the necessary health measures have been taken in schools to prevent the spread of the infection.
In the face of this event, it has become necessary for us to explain the truth regarding this disease and answer the common questions regarding it.
Viral infection
> What is hand, foot and mouth disease? Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is a mild, contagious viral infection that is common among young children. Symptoms of this disease include ulcers in the mouth and a rash on the hands and feet. Hand, foot, and mouth disease is often caused by the Coxsackie virus. The disease is most prevalent during the summer and early fall in the United States, but in tropical climates, outbreaks occur during the rainy season.
There is no specific treatment for hand, foot, and mouth disease. However, washing hands often and avoiding close contact with people infected with the disease may help reduce the child’s risk of infection.
> What is the main cause of hand, foot and mouth disease? HFMD is caused by viruses belonging to the enterovirus family, and Coxsackie Virus A16 is usually the most common cause of the disease. This disease can also be caused by other coxsackieviruses, including coxsackievirus A6, in which case the symptoms may be more serious.
> How does injury occur? Hand, foot, and mouth disease is caused by exposure to a person infected with the Coxsackie virus. Most people get this infection – hand, foot and mouth disease – through the mouth. The disease is transmitted through direct exposure to an infected person’s secretions and fluids, which include nasal or throat secretions, saliva, fluid secreted from blisters, feces, and respiratory droplets that are suspended in the air following coughing or sneezing.
> Who is the person we fear getting the disease?
Age is the main risk factor for hand, foot, and mouth disease, as it is most common among children under 5 to 7 years of age. This disease can affect anyone at any age. Older children and adults are thought to have immunity to hand, foot, and mouth disease. They often form antibodies following exposure to viruses that cause the disease. But teenagers and adults can sometimes develop hand, foot, and mouth disease.
– Physical proximity. Children in schools, in particular, are at risk of contracting the disease, because the infection spreads through direct contact between people. This disease is more common in child care centers, due to young children constantly needing diaper changes and help using the toilet, in addition to their tendency to put their hands in their mouths.
Children become most contagious during the first week of developing hand, foot, and mouth disease. But the virus may remain dormant in the body for weeks following the symptoms disappear. This means that the child can still infect others.
As for some people, especially adults, the virus is usually transmitted to them without any symptoms of the disease appearing.
Symptoms
In children, infection may begin with fever and sore throat. They may lose their appetite and sometimes do not feel well. A day or two following the fever starts, painful sores may appear in the front of the mouth or throat. Shortly therefollowing, a rash appears, consisting of small, raised red spots on the skin of the hands and feet, and perhaps on the buttocks. These usually develop on the fingers, back, palms, or soles of the feet, and sometimes on the buttocks and thigh. The spots may then turn into small blisters with a gray center.
Hand, foot, and mouth disease may cause all or just some of the following symptoms. It includes the following:
– Fever, sore throat, feeling tired and loss of appetite.
– Painful, pimple-like lesions on the tongue, gums, and inner cheeks, and irritation in infants and young children.
– A red rash on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet, and sometimes on the buttocks. This rash does not itch, but it sometimes causes blisters. The rash may appear red, white, gray, or appear only in the form of small bumps, depending on the color of the skin.
The usual period from the time of initial infection until symptoms appear (the incubation period) is 3 to 6 days. The infection usually passes within 7 to 10 days, and there is little a doctor can do, and hand, foot, and mouth disease usually does not require medical care. Antibiotics will not help because this disease is caused by a virus.
Sores that appear in the back of the mouth and throat may indicate a related viral disease called herpetic angina. Other features of herpetic angina include a sudden rise in temperature and, in some cases, convulsive seizures. Rarely, sores appear on the hands, feet, or other parts of the body.
Medical advice
> When is a doctor’s consultation necessary? Hand, foot, and mouth disease is a mild illness. It usually causes fever and the mild symptoms we mentioned for only a few days. However, we recommend consulting a doctor in the following cases:
– If the child is less than six months old.
– If he has a weak immune system.
– If he has mouth ulcers or sore throat, and is unable to drink fluids due to pain.
– Finally, if the child’s symptoms do not improve following 10 days.
> Is hand, foot and mouth disease a serious disease? Hand, foot, and mouth disease is common in children under 5 years old, and anyone at any age can develop it.
It is usually mild and simple, and is not a serious disease, but it is highly contagious. It can spread quickly in schools and child care centers…
> What are the most important complications? Dehydration, one of the most common complications of hand, foot, and mouth disease. This disease can cause sores in the mouth and throat, making swallowing painful, and makes a severely dehydrated child at risk unless he is given intravenous fluids in the hospital.
Although this disease is usually mild and only causes fever and mild symptoms that last for a few days, sometimes there is a possibility that the intestinal virus that causes the disease can enter the brain, causing serious complications, including:
Viral meningitis, a rare infection and inflammation of the membranes (meninges) and cerebrospinal fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord.
– Encephalitis: In this severe and life-threatening disease, inflammation of the brain occurs, although it is rare.
treatment
There is no specific medical treatment for hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD). As we mentioned, the rash appears in the form of small red bumps or blisters on the palms of the hands, the soles of the feet, and the fingers and toes. It appears in the mouth in the form of painful ulcers or ulcers that are clustered mainly in the Back of the throat.
To relieve symptoms and prevent dehydration during illness, simple steps can be taken, such as:
– Encourage the affected child to drink plenty of fluids during illness.
To manage pain and fever, take an over-the-counter analgesic or fever-reducing medication to relieve pain caused by mouth ulcers and reduce fever. These medications include acetaminophen or ibuprofen.
– To relieve itching, the rash is usually neither painful nor itchy, and therefore does not need to put anything on it. If there appears to be itching, hydrocortisone ointment 1 percent (without a prescription) can be used.
To make it easier to eat and drink without pain, we recommend the following:
– Sucking on ice or ice chips.
– Eat ice cream or sherbet.
– Drink cold drinks, such as water.
– Drink warm drinks, such as tea.
– Avoid acidic foods and drinks, such as citrus fruits, fruit drinks and soda.
– Eat soft foods that do not require a lot of chewing.
Children with hand, foot, and mouth disease should be helped to clean their bodies daily to remove attached bacteria and viruses, and to help prevent additional infections. However, when bathing children with the disease, the patient must be treated gently to avoid cracking of the blisters on the skin.
protection
We can reduce the risk of our children developing hand, foot, and mouth disease by following several methods, according to the Mayo Clinic, such as:
– Wash your hands frequently. Wash your hands for at least 20 seconds, and be sure to wash them following using the toilet or changing diapers, and also before preparing or eating food, and following blowing your nose, sneezing, or coughing. Use hand sanitizer, if soap and water are not available.
– Teaching children healthy hygiene habits. Teach your children how to wash hands, and help them do this regularly. Teach them how to follow good hygiene habits in general. Explain to them why you should not put their fingers, hands, or other objects in their mouths.
– Disinfect common areas. Make sure to clean the places and surfaces that many people take turns using, with soap and water first. Then use a diluted solution of chlorine bleach and water; To clean it. If you are in a childcare facility, follow a strict cleaning and disinfection schedule, as the virus can live for several days on surfaces in shared spaces, including door handles, and on shared items, such as toys.
– Avoid close contact. People with hand, foot, and mouth disease should be isolated from other people when symptoms of the disease appear. Because it is a highly contagious disease. Children with hand, foot, and mouth disease should stay home and not go to child care facilities or schools until the fever is gone and the mouth sores have healed. Do not go to work and stay home if you become ill.
* Community medicine consultant
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