Hand, Foot, & Mouth Disease (HFMD) - some facts

This is not medical advice; you refer to more trusted sources than blog postings for health care.

That said, I'm taking some notes to share.

Hand Food and Mouth Disease, from the Center for Disease Control

Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is a common viral illness of infants and children. The disease causes fever and blister-like eruptions in the mouth and/or a skin rash. HFMD is often confused with foot-and-mouth (also called hoof-and-mouth) disease, a disease of cattle, sheep, and swine; however, the two diseases are not related—they are caused by different viruses. Humans do not get the animal disease, and animals do not get the human disease.

Treatment and Medical Management

• There is no specific treatment for HFMD.

• Symptoms can be treated to provide relief from pain from mouth sores and from fever and aches:

  • Fever can be treated with antipyretics (drugs that reduce fevers).

  • Pain can be treated with acetaminophen, ibuprofen, or other over-the-counter pain relievers.

  • Mouthwashes or sprays that numb pain can be used to lessen mouth pain.

• Fluid intake should be enough to prevent dehydration (lack of body fluids). If moderate-to-severe dehydration develops, it can be treated medically by giving fluids through the veins.

from MedlinePlus from the National Institutes of Health:

Treatment    Return to top

There is no specific treatment for the infection other than relief of symptoms.

Treatment with antibiotics is not effective, and is not indicated. Over-the-counter medicines, such as Tylenol (acetaminophen) can be used to treat fever. Aspirin should not be used in viral illnesses in children under age 12 years.

Salt water mouth rinses (1/2 teaspoon of salt to 1 glass of warm water) may be soothing if the child is able to rinse without swallowing. Make sure your child gets plenty of fluids. Extra fluid is needed when a fever is present. The best fluids are cold milk products. Many children refuse juices and sodas because their acid content causes burning pain in the ulcers.

Outlook (Prognosis)    Return to top

Generally, complete recovery occurs in 5 to 7 days.

I'm not going to try to do a complete list of additional information links; the best of them that I found quickly was the Hand-Foot-Mouth Disease reference from Hardin MD at the University of Iowa.