Hi Moms,
My son (3.5) came down with a fever of 102.4 on Wednesday and was complaining of a sore throat. We took him to Urgent Care (it was 7pm) and they ruled out strep. The nurse we saw was suspicious of Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease based on the blisters she saw on his throat. At the time, he had no sores on his hands and feet or anywhere else. He had a fever for the rest of the night and then when he woke the next morning but has been fever free since yesterday morning.
This morning he woke up complaining of his stomach hurting and about an hour later started throwing up. This only happened once but he had some nausea for a few hours, no fever. I checked his palms and his feet for sores and they had finally showed up. He also has them on his chin, below lower lip. I did call the pediatrician and they said the vomiting is a symptom of the disease and there isn't much I can do for him except keep him hydrated.
Since then, the rash has spread more than I was expecting. It is now on his thighs, arms, tops of hands, ear lobes, around his nostrils, and diaper area. I expected some spreading but I guess I am just so nervous what tomorrow holds for him. The rash has not begun to blister yet and if each little raised area turns into a blister, he is in for a world of pain. I guess I am just wondering what everyones experience with this disease is.
Thanks in advance.
My oldest had it when he was about 2, and it was a terrible illness. I had to keep him home from daycare for 1 week and he was in great pain. He didn't want to eat because of the mouth sores, but what DID help was to give him Pedialyte and the Pedialyte popsicles. I wouldn't waste any effort on regular popsicles, as he will need the electrolytes from the Pedialyte to prevent dehydration.
Hang in there, mom!
My baby got it and it wasn't a big deal for her, but I caught it from her... in my 30s... and it was really really BAD! It lasted over a month, and I had so many sores in my mouth and on my tongue, I couldn't eat well. It made my tongue swell. I ended up on antiviral medication and a prescription mouth gargle called "miracle mouthwash." I have great sympathy for how much these mouth sores can HURT!
The doctor said the older we are when we get it, the worse it usually is.
My son had it once.
His throat/mouth was the worse and he got blisters on his feet. Maybe a few on his hands. He was old enough for the Magic Swizzle mouth rinse and since he didn't really want to do that--I dabbed it onto the blisters on his feet, as they were the most painful ones for him. It seemed to help a bit to numb them.
Avoid carbonated stuff....cool liquids and ice pops, etc. helped.
It's nasty and painful, keep him hydrated and Tylenol for pain might help.
Hope he's better soon. With HFM, time is the real healer. :(
yes both of my kids had it. I didn't even know they had it until the rash came. Looking back, I put the symptoms together and knew what it was. They both got really rosey cheeks and was just worn out. They were a bit feverish, but, nothing too bad. I just thought maybe they were overtired from a really busy week. Then they broke out in a rash on the arms, legs and back. The rash was NOT bothersome to them.
Since it's a virus, there's nothing you can give him to make it go away. The illness just has to work it's way out of his system. I would just treat the symptoms. Motrin, oatmeal baths, benadryl, etc.
Hope this helps.
Ugh! Two of mine had this around Thanksgiving. My youngest (2 1/2) had it much worse than my older one (3 at the time). It varies.
My youngest got the sores TERRIBLY all over her entire diaper area, feet, hands, mouth, eyes, etc. It plateaued after a few days (your son probably wont' get many more sores) and she did some vomiting.
My son just got the sores on his mouth and very faint on hands and feet-I wouldn't have noticed them on hands and feet if doctor didn't point them out. No vomiting.
It varies. You just have to wait it out. The rash does go away without a trace. Hang in there!
My kids had it for the first time ever. One of my 2 kids(who are in school) brought it home and zap themselves and the other 2 children. All had the high fever. My oldest(who's 5 in a half) seem to get over hers quickly. She didn't have the blisters that bad but the sore like thing in her throat. My second daughter(the middle child-who's 4 in a half) had a mild case of it. My youngest,son(who's 2 in a half) had it worst. Had bad blisters all over his legs,arms,ear lobes and by his butt. Took him a little long to recovery. Thats the first time anyone ever got this disease in my family. Never really heard of it.
Hope you little man starts to feel better. I know any parent doesn't want to see there child in pain. I know I hated to see all mine in that condition especially my youngest b/c he had it the worst and there's only so much you can do for them.
My daughter had it when she was 13 mos. She only had 1 blister on one hand and one on each foot and like 2 in her mouth. But she had the worst "diaper rash" ever. If that area is bad you may need a special cream. And keep that area as clean as possible. Even allowing him to air out as much as possible.
My son was never diagnosed, but it sounds like my son and your son both have/had it. In our situation, my son had just turned 3 yrs old and kept telling me he was itchy. The blisters itched apparently. Perhaps it tingled or hurt and he didn't know how to verbalize that. But we spent 3 nights sleeping together so I could try to help him not scratch at his feet and hands. It was just 3 bad nights and then it started to go away on it's own. My son did not have them in his mouth. Took a good month before all blisters were completely gone.
We had HF&M in February and it *sucked*!!! My 5 year old was hardly affected: just a few spots on her butt after a day or two of the fever. My 3 year old was wiped out for about 4 days and had a few blisters on her fingers, toes and in her mouth. My 11 month old and *I* had it the worst. She was COVERED in red, raised bumps - I was sure it was chicken pox! But they didn't seem to bother her. 3 months later and there's still the "shadow" of them under the first few layers of skin (it is almost gone though). I had them on the soles of my feet and palms of my hands and they itched SO SO bad!! The worst of it only lasted about 2 days, and then it subsided.
Your son may get a few more, but once the blisters start to appears it usually stops spreading within 2 days or so.
Oh, and don't freak out when the skin under the blisters starts peeling off - it's painless, though kinda gross. And also, when his nails start flaking off. It's from the after effects of the blisters. Again, not painful unless a piece of attached nail gets caught and rips off. We're just about done with the flaky nails (3 months later!) and the new nails underneath grow back just fine on their own. I've just been gently clipping off the extra nail to keep them as short as possible and we haven't had any problems.
I had this last year... It is horrible and I can not imagine a child going through this. As I was nearing the end of it, about 8 or 9 days after I first saw the blisters, my skin became very sensitive. To touch certain places on my body, it felt like I was sunburnt and rubbed against something. Keep your little one hydrated. If he has sores in his mouth, do not give him anything acidy. I hope he is over it soon!
so sorry your child has to go thru this , one of our twin grandsons at 1.5 yrs. had this and we kepted him out of the nursery.
