Tom, 4, has had little pimples all over his hands and feet, as well as around his mouth, since yesterday. He does not have a fever but Marianne, his mother, still preferred to consult. Very quickly, her pediatrician reassured her: nothing serious, Tom simply had hand-foot-mouth syndrome, a common disease, especially when the children are in a community. This condition is due to a virus, the coxsackie, particularly virulent in summer and fall. Once the virus is installed in the body, the disease takes 2 to 10 days to appear.
Causes of foot-hand-mouth syndrome
Certainly not from the fact that baby put his feet in his mouth, as we can sometimes hear! Disease is actually transmitted through saliva, nasal secretions or from contact with infected stools. Clearly, your child can be contaminated if he handles soiled objects or food. The nurseries, canteens Where swimming poolsare thus places conducive to contamination.
Also read:Why does my child always have a runny nose?
Different symptoms of chickenpox
The buttons are not the same as those observed during the development of chickenpox. While they come in the form of transparent, bulging vesicles filled with chickenpox fluid, there the pimples are full. They do not reach the torso, nor scalp and scratch little. On the other hand, if it is an aggressive, more diffuse form, the arms and legs can be affected and present blisters. From canker sores are also present in the mouth, hence a lack of appetite. The child does not always have fever but can complain about headacheand throat.
Young children most affected by hand-foot-mouth syndrome
It is especially young children, before 5 years old, who are concerned. When they are older, they have better control over hygiene practices. But adults can also contract the disease. With the risk that it will be stronger. “The viruses of children in adults are always less well tolerated, confirms Dr. Béatrice Letavernier. Often, parents evoke burnsunder the arch of the foot, itchingbetween the fingers, while the children, them, complain little. “It should also be noted that the fact of having had once the disease does not immunize for all the life.
Treatments for hand-foot-mouth syndrome
No specific treatment is given: the disease resolves spontaneously within a week. In other words, we consult if we are worried and if the child has a fever, but it is not obligatory if he tolerates the situation well. Symptoms can be relieved very well with a little paracetamol. Also consider using a antiseptic soap(pharmacies), as well as a drying spray (Cytelium®, A-Derma, for example) to accelerate the scarring of pimples. Avoid foods that are too hot, spicy or acidic if the mouth is irritated and instead rely on yogurts and compotes. Finally, know that nails may crumbleeven weeks later. They then grow back naturally.
The right actions to limit the risks
Rigorous hygiene is enough to limit contagion:
- Wash your hands before and after changing baby
- Use hydroalcoholic solutions if you are on the move.
- Do not relax your vigilance because the virus continues to exist in the stool for two months.
- If you are pregnant and that your oldest has contracted the disease, do not panic! Know already that the virus is less contagious than that of varicella spread through the airways: with good hand washing, there is no reason for you to catch it. On the other hand, this disease has no known risk on the development of the fetus.
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