Beware of hand, foot and mouth disease

This is the 3388th article of Da Yi Xiao Hu

Whenever summer and autumn come, the temperature rises and there is abundant rain, which provides "comfortable" breeding conditions for the spread of hand, foot and mouth disease. From the beginning of the school season to October, hand, foot and mouth disease spreads rapidly and is very easy to become popular and break out in schools, which makes parents talk about it. Therefore, during the peak period of hand, foot and mouth disease outbreaks, parents should understand how to identify hand, foot and mouth disease and how to protect their children.

1. Causes

Hand, foot and mouth disease is an acute infectious disease caused by enterovirus, of which there are more than 20 types, with Coxsackie A16 and enterovirus 71 (EV 71) being the most common. It is widespread and can occur in all seasons, but is more common in summer and autumn. People are generally susceptible and can be infected at all ages, mainly children under five years old, with the highest incidence in children under three years old. And after infection, they only gain immunity to that type of virus, and lack immunity to other types of viruses. This means that because of the variety of virus types, hand, foot and mouth disease cannot be completely immune to the disease after one infection, and may be repeatedly infected. Hand, foot and mouth disease likes a humid and hot environment, and the commonly used 75% alcohol cannot inactivate it, but it can be inactivated by exposing it to ultraviolet rays, potassium permanganate, bleaching powder, etc., or in a dry environment.

2. Transmission channels

The main transmission route of hand, foot and mouth disease is through close contact between people. Children and latent carriers are the main sources of infection. Most of the latent carriers are adults, because adults have almost no symptoms after infection. The main ways include oral transmission and air droplet transmission, such as contact with saliva containing the virus, hands contaminated with feces, various toys, clothing, etc., as well as contact with water sources contaminated by the virus, cross-infection when going out, etc., which can cause our children to be infected with hand, foot and mouth disease.

3. Symptoms

Most cases of hand, foot and mouth disease are characterized by:

1. Fever

2. Scattered herpes appear on the oral mucosa, which usually begin to appear in the early stage of the disease. The oral mucosa herpes is as big as corn and is surrounded by a red halo.

3. Herpes or maculopapular rashes appear on the hands, feet, and buttocks. Liquid flows out after the herpes ruptures.

4. It may also be accompanied by atypical symptoms such as poor mental state and poor appetite.

If your child has the above symptoms, parents should highly suspect that the child is infected with hand, foot and mouth disease and seek medical attention immediately. Most children can recover in about a week, and very few will develop severe symptoms, affecting the central nervous system and heart, lung and brain functions. In terms of treatment, it is necessary to actively treat the symptoms, avoid high fever, pay attention to isolation, avoid cross infection, nutritional support and traditional Chinese medicine treatment, such as Ganlu Xiaodu Dan or Qingwen Baidu Yin, etc. Therefore, timely medical treatment and treatment are very important.

4. Prevention in personal daily life

1. Wash your hands before meals, after going to the toilet, and after going out, and do not eat raw or cold food. Caregivers need to change their clothes and disinfect their hands before coming back from outside and contacting children.

2. Toys and tableware used daily should be disinfected and kept clean. Pay attention to maintaining a clean home environment, ventilate the room frequently, and dry clothes and quilts frequently.

3. During the epidemic, reduce going out, such as to supermarkets, squares, amusement parks, etc. Do not go to places with dense crowds or poor ventilation.

4. Make sure your children get enough sleep, don't let them get too tired, and develop healthy living habits. This can improve your children's physical fitness, enhance their immunity, and help resist virus invasion.

5. Because EV71 is one of the important pathogens that cause hand, foot and mouth disease, vaccination can be given at the appropriate time.

As the saying goes, "Prevention is better than cure." Parents should actively take protective measures and lead their children to take personal protection, which is the most important part of avoiding hand, foot and mouth disease. I hope all children can grow up healthy and happy!

Author: Zhang Xiaowen, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, standardized training resident physician, master's student. Research direction: children's spleen and stomach diseases and precocious puberty and dwarfism.

Editor-in-chief and tutor: Shen Jian, Department of Pediatrics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Director of Teaching, Associate Chief Physician. Doctor of Medicine, Master Supervisor. National TCM Innovation Core Talent of the Central Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine Inheritance and Innovation "Hundreds of Thousands" Talent Project. The popular science monograph "The Wisdom of Traditional Chinese Medicine that Good Mothers Should Know" won the 10th Healthy China Forum and the First Annual Outstanding Popular Science Work Award.