Guidelines for the prevention and control of hand, foot and mouth disease

Hand, foot and mouth disease is a common disease in recent years and it scares parents. It is contagious to a certain extent. During an attack, the patient will have fever, ulcers or rash-like lesions on the hands, feet and mouth. More serious cases can also cause myocarditis, meningitis and other diseases, and even death. Therefore, parents are particularly worried about their children. Based on this situation, the country has also issued guidelines for the prevention and control of hand, foot and mouth disease, which can give parents a preliminary understanding and knowledge of this disease.

The Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease Prevention and Control Guidelines remind parents to have a comprehensive understanding of their children's physical condition. If your child is not as lively and active as usual, has a fever, and has a sore mouth, please seek medical attention immediately if he or she is infected with hand, foot and mouth disease. Do not delay the child's illness, and keep the child away from contact with the outside world to prevent infection.

Several sets of numbers to remember

3 major parts: Hand, foot and mouth disease is an infectious disease caused by enterovirus, characterized by symptoms in 3 major parts of the hands, feet and mouth, manifested as oral ulcers, blister-like rashes on the palms and soles, and accompanied by fever. This disease can occur year-round in tropical areas, but is more common in summer and early autumn in warm and cold areas.

4 no characteristics: The rash that appears on the hands and feet does not look like mosquito bites, drug rash, herpes labialis, or chickenpox, so it is also called "four no's"; and it also has the "four no" characteristics of no pain, no itching, no scabs, and no scars.

Hand, foot and mouth disease mainly affects babies under 5 years old.

2-7 days incubation period: When a child is infected with the virus, there is an incubation period of 2-7 days, and then symptoms such as low fever, discomfort, poor appetite, sore throat, etc. will appear. After 1-2 days, red blisters appear in the child's mouth and quickly break into small ulcers of 2-3 mm, distributed on the tongue, gums, cheeks, etc., causing the child to have oral pain, drooling, refusing to eat, etc. Subsequently, red maculopapules appear on the palms and soles, and some also have blisters containing turbid fluid. The same rash can also appear on the buttocks. The infected child's body temperature is around 38.5℃ and lasts for 2-3 days.

Self-healing in 7-10 days: Hand, foot and mouth disease is a relatively mild infectious disease. Most children who are sick can recover on their own in about 7-10 days and have good recovery results. Usually oral ulcers heal within a week of onset, and rashes on the palms and soles of the feet heal on their own within 10 days of onset without leaving any scars. Hand, foot and mouth disease rarely causes complications, but a very small number of children may have complications such as high fever, systemic rash, diarrhea, myocarditis, pneumonia, meningitis, etc.

Home care is important

There is not just one type of enterovirus that causes hand, foot and mouth disease, but several types, the more common ones include Coxsackievirus A16 and enterovirus EV71. These viruses can invade everyone, but because adults have relatively stronger resistance, they are generally just virus carriers, while infants and young children are prone to becoming ill after being infected by these viruses.

There is currently no particularly effective treatment for viral infections. The only targeted treatments are to reduce fever, relieve the pain of oral ulcers, etc., so home care is mainly the main approach. The care methods are similar to those for children with colds, such as paying attention to rest and drinking plenty of water. Do not pop the herpes on the palms and soles of children's feet. These herpes contain more viruses and are highly contagious. Popping them can easily cause secondary infection. At the same time, the pain of oral ulcers will affect the child's appetite. You can give the child some cooler food, and the diet should be light and soft. Avoid eating overly hot, sour, spicy and irritating food.

Generally speaking, the higher the child's fever and the longer the fever lasts, the more serious the illness. If you find that your child has persistent high fever (over 39°C), vomiting, headache, shortness of breath, mental depression and other symptoms, go to the hospital as soon as possible to prevent serious complications.

Keep clean and wash your hands frequently

Hand, foot and mouth disease is mainly transmitted through close contact. The virus can lurk in the throat, saliva, herpes and feces of patients or virus carriers. Contact with the patient's oral or nasal secretions, ruptured herpes, feces, and contaminated clothing, toys and other items may cause infection.

The most important measure to prevent hand, foot and mouth disease is to maintain good hygiene, especially washing hands frequently, which can significantly reduce the spread of the disease. Since adults are often carriers of the virus, in addition to urging children to wash their hands frequently, adults themselves should also pay attention to washing their hands frequently.

Hand, foot and mouth disease that occurs in childcare institutions such as kindergartens and nurseries can easily cause an epidemic in the entire institution. Patients in the first week of illness are most contagious, so when a child contracts the disease, they should be isolated at home for a week. On the one hand, this allows the child to rest more to promote a quick recovery, and on the other hand, it can also reduce the spread of the disease.

It is recommended to take Chinese medicine for prevention

Experts point out that hand, foot and mouth disease has many transmission routes and infants and young children are generally susceptible. Most cases have mild symptoms and most patients recover on their own. A small number of cases may develop severe symptoms such as meningitis, encephalitis, myocarditis and pneumonia. Some seriously ill children may progress rapidly and are prone to death. Therefore, maintaining good hygiene among children, their families and childcare institutions is the key to preventing infection.

There is no particularly effective way to prevent and control hand, foot and mouth disease. Parents can only rely on their children to pay attention to personal hygiene, wash hands frequently, change clothes frequently, etc. in daily life, and increase nutrition in their children's diet to improve their immunity and resistance and reduce the occurrence of hand, foot and mouth disease.