Hand, foot and mouth disease on the rise in the North, 3 warning signs of serious illness

Hand, foot and mouth disease on the rise

On May 31, according to statistics, the number of children with hand, foot and mouth disease visiting the National Children’s Hospital is on an increasing trend.

In April and May, the hospital recorded 776 children with hand, foot and mouth disease coming to the clinic, an increase of 759 cases compared to the previous 2 months. Among them, 114 children were hospitalized for treatment.

Being treated for hand, foot and mouth disease at the Center for Tropical Diseases (National Children’s Hospital), Thuy Anh (31 months old) was hospitalized on the 5th day of the illness, with a high fever, burning pain in the mouth. When examining the whole body, the doctors noticed that the skin on the thighs on both sides of the baby was scattered with dry blisters.

The baby was conducted to do the necessary tests, the results showed that Thuy Anh had hand, foot and mouth disease. Now after 3 days of treatment, the child has no fever and can eat.

Dr. Do Thien Hai, Deputy Director of the Center for Tropical Diseases (National Children’s Hospital), said that hand, foot and mouth disease occurs all year round, especially during the changing seasons, which is the most favorable time for pathogenic viruses to develop. .

“Children with hand, foot, and mouth disease often have symptoms such as: fever (low fever or high fever) and skin lesions (red patches, blisters in special locations such as throat, around the mouth, palms, palms) legs, buttocks, knees…).

However, there are some children who only have mouth ulcers or small bumps on the buttocks or groin, if the family does not pay attention, it is difficult to detect,” said Dr. Hai.

Typically, baby Hoang Nam (15 months old) was hospitalized due to a high fever of 39-40 degrees that did not go down, fussiness, mouth pain, and inability to eat.

“I just thought that he had a fever and mouth sores, so he couldn’t eat, but I didn’t know he had hand-foot-and-mouth disease because when he was at home, his hands and feet didn’t show up at all,” said Nam’s mother.

Do Thien Hai, most children with the disease have mild symptoms, but if not detected and treated promptly, the disease can also have many dangerous complications such as shock, encephalitis, meningitis, myositis. heart failure, acute pulmonary edema, and even death.

“When detecting that a child has hand, foot and mouth disease, the family should take the child to a medical facility for advice on how to care, how to detect severe symptoms so that they can bring the child to timely treatment. Do not research online and then self-medicate, it may make your child’s illness worsebHai noted.

3 early warning signs of severe dengue fever

According to Dr. Hai, children with hand, foot and mouth disease have the following signs, which are serious developments that require hospitalization for treatment:

High fever: The child has a fever above 38.5 degrees for more than 48 hours and does not respond to antipyretic drugs.

Startle: This is a sign of neurotoxicity. Watch for this symptom even while the child is playing, and see if the frequency of startles increases over time.

Persistent and persistent crying: Babies can cry a lot, even cry all night without sleep. Babies sleep for about 15-20 minutes, wake up crying for 15-20 minutes and then go back to sleep. Many parents often explain that their baby has sore mouth spots, but that is not the case. It is due to neurotoxicity at a very early stage.

Sharing about some cases of pediatric patients with hand, foot and mouth disease who were admitted to the hospital late, Dr. Hai shared:In the past, there have been many cases of children with serious complications because the family did not know, so they unfortunately ignored the warning signs.

If a child has one of the three symptoms mentioned above, parents need to immediately take the child to a medical facility for timely examination and treatment. .

Measures to prevent hand, foot and mouth disease

Dr. Hai said that there is currently no vaccine and specific treatment for hand, foot and mouth disease. Each time a child is infected, only creates antibodies to a certain virus, the child can become ill again if infected with another virus of the Enterovirus group. Therefore, focusing on disease prevention in the community is the best measure to protect children and their families.

According to Dr. Hai, to prevent hand-foot-and-mouth disease, parents need to wash their hands often with soap under running water several times a day (both adults and children), especially before preparing food, before feeding/feeding the baby, before holding the baby, after using the toilet, after changing diapers and cleaning the baby.

Practice good food hygiene: eat well, drink well; eating utensils are washed before use; use clean water in daily activities; do not give food to children; Do not let children eat, suck, suck on toys, share napkins, handkerchiefs, eating utensils such as cups, bowls, plates, spoons, toys that have not been disinfected.

Regularly wipe down surfaces and tools that come into contact with everyday life such as toys, school supplies, doorknobs, stair handrails, table/chair tops, floors, and floors with soap or common detergents. Do not allow children to come into contact with sick or suspected sick people.

Using a hygienic latrine, patient feces and waste must be collected and disposed of in a hygienic latrine.

Please watch the video on how to wash your hands to prevent diseases, including hand, foot and mouth disease: