Hand, foot and mouth disease: Warning of neurological complications

From the beginning of the year until now, I have received more than 500 children under 3 years of age with hand, foot and mouth disease. Severe complications focus on children under 2 years of age.

Water ball appears in the foot of a child who is treating hand, foot and mouth disease at Children's Hospital 1. On April 6, BS. Truong Huu Khanh, Head of the Infection Department - Hospital (Children's Hospital) 1, said that children with hand, foot and mouth disease have brain problems that are usually not deep coma but have mild neurological symptoms that are hard to notice: difficulty sleeping , constantly crying, startled at waking or at the beginning of sleepiness.

Children may show panic and talk babbling, chattering, shivering, twitching. Other symptoms can be seen when there are complications such as very high fever, vomiting and vomiting a lot, flaky skin, fast pulse but no high fever, weak limbs, mouth distortion.

8 days of monitoring foot, hand, mouth disease

From the beginning of the year until now, the Department of Infectious Diseases of Children 1 receives more than 500 children under 3 years of age suffering from hand, foot and mouth disease. Severe complications occur mainly in children under 2 years of age.

Previously, the disease was mainly due to the benign coxsakie agent. But recently complications leading to encephalitis, myocarditis, meningitis from hand, foot and mouth disease are caused by another very dangerous agent, enterovirus 7.

Dr. Khanh also added that the appearance of water balloons is the first stage of hand, foot and mouth disease and nothing special due to the complication rate of less than 1%.

However, when the child has complications if not treated properly and promptly, the child can die within a few hours.

According to the summation of many years of Children's Hospital 1, hand, foot and mouth disease occurs in 2 seasons of the year, from February to April and then from September to December.

Manifestations of hand, foot and mouth disease are also easy to recognize if noticeable are water balloons. The water ball is 2 - 10 mm in size, gray, oval, water shadow appears on the buttocks, knees, palms, soles and often presses without pain.

The water balloon also appears in the mouth and when it breaks, it causes ulcers in the mouth. When floating, children may have mild fever, harassment due to mouth pain, stop eating. The water ball will deflate itself after 5 to 7 days. Some children have vomiting, diarrhea when they float or when the balloon has collapsed. In order to detect this complication early, it is important that when a child has hand, foot and mouth disease (water balloon symptoms in the arms, legs, mouth), parents try to follow the child closely for at least 8 days to immediately detect signs of suspected complications and bringing the child to the hospital.

On the other hand, if there are abnormal neuropathy symptoms mentioned above and water bubbles appear in the child's palms, soles, pillows, and buttocks, quickly bring the child to the hospital.

For uncomplicated cases, home remedies can be treated with pain relievers, feeding easily digested liquid foods. Parents try to feed children into many meals.

Source of infection: From adults

Currently, the agent enterovirus 71 does not have a vaccine, so the current prevention is to ensure hygiene in eating.

This disease is common in young children under 5 years old and very contagious, often spread quickly through the gastrointestinal tract and children live with houses and activities with daycare. Children should be absent from school or avoid contact with sick children when sharing a home because the disease is highly contagious from one child to another when exposed.

According to BS. Khanh, to limit the spread of this disease at the present time, the most important thing is that adults should pay attention to washing their hands thoroughly.

"When giving children to eat, play toys, change diapers, clean feces or urine, take care . without washing their hands, adults' hands are easy to become a source of infection when adults hold onto another child. . ", BS Khanh warns.

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