Jennifer, from what I learned, this is a very common thing. It is awful to look at it and even more painful...but very common especially among kiddos that put their hands in their mouths, eat with their fingers, etc. I have 2 girls, both had this. I am not sure what your doctor told you to do, but mine told me to make a little mixture of Maalox and Beneadryl in a cup and (if is old enough) have him gargle with the mixture...if he is not old enough to gargle, just "paint" his mouth with it...it provides some relief and some good news is that it only lasts a few days. Mine did not stay in daycare, but contracted this after a play date at the park... Hope he feels better soon.
So many of my friends who children go to daycare have this right now. It's super contageous and for children this age they still put their hands in their mouths. I feel for you!
Jennifer,
My son had hand, foot and mouth disease about a year ago. I have to admit it was not the most pleasent experience. If you son develops the blisters in this mouth they will be pretty painful. However, we took some liquid antacid (like Mylanta) and applied it to a cotton swab and coated the blisters in his mouth. It seemed to help ALOT. As far as contracting it myself, neither I nor my boyfriend had a problem. Hope your son feels better and good luck.
Hi, well, my niece had this when she was younger and I did get it from her. Apparently it is pretty rare to get it as an adult but the symptoms are much worse. It was horrible. But really you are just supposed to wash your hands and be a little cautious with them. You have to have some kind of direct contact with the sores... I don't know how I got it, but that being said, my husband never got it from me so just wash your hands after changing diapers and having contact with the sores. I hope he gets better soon. My niece did not seem to be in too much discomfort but I sure was...
Hi Jennifer,
when my son was about 14 and then 16 months old he got HF&M disease. the first time it was as you described and they said he probably got it from daycare although he wasn't in daycare at the time. ?? The second time he got it, it was much worse visually. In other words, it looked like the measles and was all over his body. Doctor said it was pretty common for toddlers and wasn't anything to be alarmed about. They said a lot of toddlers carry it and pass it on without even realizing it and without having any symptoms. After he got it the second time, shortly after I got viral meningitis. I'm not trying to scare you at all and at first the doctor indicated there couldn't be any correlation, but after I did my own research, one of the causes of viral meningitis are enteroviruses which are intestinal viruses. This is how HF&M is spread through the intestional tract and HF&M is an enterovirus. So needless to say, I'm pretty sure that is how I caught the viral meningitis even though I couldn't get a doctor to confirm that. It was very scary because I ended up in the hospital for almost a week in ICU because they had to determine whether it was viral or bacterial (the deadly of the two). First symptom that I had was an absolutely horrible headache that didn't go away. Wash your hands religously.
I got it when I worked at a day care, It is the worst. My doctor did tell me that it is very rare to get as an adult and it works a little like chicken pox...as in you are less likely to get it again if you have already had it. I know that the daycare I worked at was gross, I would NEVER take my son there. I don't know if it happens because the daycare is dirty or what, but I know we weren't allowed time to wash toys but once a month, the rest of the time we could just spray them off. I would just look into the cleanness of the daycare. If they have have lots of kids, and are under staffed that would be a big warning sign.
My son got it like 3 times from daycare (one time after the other). It is the gift that keeps giving. By the time they get the blisters, they are no longer contagious, soooooo if the kids look fine, they could still have cooties!! Their little bodies don't build up an immunity like chicken pox so they can get it over and over again. The 3rd time my son got it, his system was already so weak from the first two times, he ran a fever of 105.9 for a week and had blisters all down his throat. The doctor gave him some special meds to numb his throat so he could eat, but he would only drink Ensure. I finally just pulled him out of that daycare center. When he went to a different one, he never got sick.
The only thing you can really do for treatment, is keep them cozy. Cool them off when the fevers come and soft, non-acidic foods to eat and lots of water until it passes. Clean everything in the house with a sanitizer spray (Chlorox has one) and wash all of his stuff. If you can do it, find a babysitter for a couple weeks until the cycle is broken at your daycare center, then take him back. You will be suprised (I worked in daycare) that no matter how much the workers wash their hands and sanitize toys and the rooms, it still runs rampant and from room to room. It's one of those things you just have to out wait.
Hi Jennifer -
HFM is very common... your doctor should have told you that. Most kids do get it and often the parents don't even realize it. My son had it and it is believed that he picked it up at one of the bouncy places in town. He had never been to daycare, or babysitters, etc. Just give him extra love and affection, let him get plenty of rest and he'll be back to normal very soon! :-)
My son had it when he was about 2 years old. The doctor said he probably picked it up from day care and the day care provider said they had never heard of this disease. Anyway, he recovered find and I never got it. The doctor told me that children were susceptible and that we adults were basically immune.
My son had contracted it from the doctors office when he was about a year old. This is a disease that usually only affects young children or kids with low immune systems. So keep him away from other kids and disenfect all toys and items that he touches until it passes. Ususally doesn't last more than two or so weeks.
My cousin gave me a book that I love, "The home pediatric book". It gives basic information on all the childrens ailments and disease up to age 10 or 12 I think. Comes in real handy when something like this pops up.
Good luck.
My son had this also. He never was in daycare. We always went to McDonald's and Chick-Fil-A, to the park and to play areas like Inflatable Wonderland. All you can do is just keep him busy and try to get his mind off the itching. He will be fine I promise you. No I never contracted it and he has only had it once and he is 3.
it went around my daughters mothers day out earlier this year. She just got one blister in each place, so it did not really bother her. Nobody else in our house got it, but some siblings do pass it back and forth.
Yes actually both my sons had this I thought the Doc was a quack but it actually is a virus. My oldest had it first then my youngest it lasted about a week and it was gone (well the blisters had to heal) my son couldnt go to his swimming classes or anything it is contagious however my doctor said it was very unlikely that we (mom and dad) would get it but there was a chance but just keep everything sanitized and you should be ok. Hope this helps
I worked at a daycare while in college and you can count on the fact that he caught it at daycare. Just do whatever the doc told you to do and please let the director of the daycare know that your son has the virus. She's required by the state to send a note out to all the parents letting them know it's going around and to be on the lookout for signs of it in their child. Don't worry, they won't tell everyone it's your son who has it :-)
2 of my 3 children had this at one point. It was not bothersome to them, and neither my husband or I got it. It is rampant in childcare facilities, but generally not harmful.
Hand, foot and mouth is highly contagious. Usually found in daycare centres where everything is in the mouth. As a daycare provider I have never had it in my house but had a boy that had reoccuring bouts from his daycare centre. Mother pulled him out after the third time and brought him to me. He never had a reoccurence again. I think he went on an antibiotic to get rid of it. Wash everything that he puts in his mouth. Good luck.
Because it is a virus, there is no medication that will get rid of it. Antibiotics are no use, and are not prescribed for this. There is one thing that may help the mouth discomfort - it's called 'magic mouthwash' (a compound that is made at the pharmacy). It tastes awful, but it helps the blisters dry out and heal faster.
My son caught it, and my husband contracted it from him. It's one of those things that you only get once, unless you're immune system is compromised. Apparently my husband had not had it as a child, but I seemed to have been immune. Taking my husband's word for it, it is extremely painful. He had trouble eating without it causing pain. His blisters stayed around longer than my son's, as well, because he had allergy symptoms at the same time. According to his doctor, the mucus drainage in the back of his throat was coating the blisters and allowing them to hang around longer, instead of bursting and drying out. It took him 10 days to get over it, and he claims to still have some discomfort when swallowing.
Fortunately it only took our son 4 days to get over it.
Your child can get it at daycare, at sunday school, at a friend's house whose child also has it, at the grocery store, at the mall, at the playground... wherever other children are. Your child can hold hands with another kid who has it, and then touch his eye, nose or mouth... and get it. It's a virus, like the cold or the flu and is transmitted the same way.
I hope your son feels better soon! For you and your husband - don't take a chance that you have immunity. Take great care to wash your hands often, not to give him too many kisses (but hugs will help him feel better!) and just get through it.
Just wanted to share a little information. Don't worry chances are that you and your husband are safe from contracting hand foot and mouth. It is a virus that is seen frequently in daycare's. It is spread by any secretions from the nose and mouth. At day care the children need to be reminded to wash hands as much as possible. But centers are big and children often forget. I hope your son is not in to much discomfort. It can take up to a week to be totally gone.
Good Luck.
Pediatric Nurse and Mother of Two
My daughter also had it when she was 2 but she ran a high fever and had tons of blisters i her mouth. Our pediatrician assured me that tons of kids get this and that it is really no big deal. He said it had probably come from daycare or nursery at church. No I didn't get it at all. I believe the doctors said that it was a childhood disease. Hope this helps
Jennifer,
Unfortunately, it is very common in daycare. My son is 21 months and he's had it twice. The blisters were tiny and did not bother him. It was the other symptoms I was concerned about...the high fever. My son is a thumb sucker which makes him an easy target for viruses in daycare. I just wash his hands often and when he is sick I change the linens on his bed often. I never contracted the virus myself again just washed my hands often and still snuggled lots with him.