My 2-year-old daughter was diagnosed with Coxsackie virus on Monday. It seems to have started on Saturday. She has many mouth blisters, none on the hands or feet or anywhere else. Her fever seems to have subsided. But there are two things that I'm wondering about, for any other moms who've dealt with this: 1) there is a terrible odor coming from her mouth. I assume it's just a symptom of the infection, but it's overwhelmingly awful and I don't see anything about odor in the stuff I've read about the illness; and 2)her blisters are so painful that she won't eat anything at all now. She at least was eating yogurt and plain food for a couple days, but starting yesterday afternoon she won't eat/drink anything but milk. She constantly tells me she is hungry, but then she tries to eat or drink something, and she erupts into tears. She won't even drink a yogurt smoothie anymore.
Is this normal? When will she start feeling better? The doctor acted as if this virus was no big deal, but I feel concerned now that she won't eat. In general, she seems to be a little better because the fever is gone and she is sleeping normally now, but the blisters/eating has gotten worse. I don't know if we should go back to the doctor. Any other moms go through this, any advice? Thanks!
Thanks, all. We did go to the doctor and he confirmed it was coxsackie. No fungus. Said the odor can certainly be a symptom when there is an infection anywhere in the body. After 7 days, she was back to normal. It was a rough 7 days, though! And to those who commented (or wrote me personally) about the line in my bio message that says I live in a "house full of junk," that is just my way of saying we like to collect stuff, not that we live in disease-ridden squalor.
Thanks again for all the advice!
If you can get her to swoosh some peptobismol (an ant-acid) in her mouth without swallowing it,it will help her mouth be less painful.
Good Luck!
S
Hi L.:
I was never diagnosed with coxsackie virus, but when I was young, I used to get terrible, terrible bouts of canker sores that would literally coat my mouth and throat. I know what your daughter is feeling: it would hurt to swallow, hurt to talk, sometimes hurt just to have saliva in your mouth.
Because I wasn't eating, our doctor gave my mother a prescription for a gel, basically like a liquid Novacaine, (unfortunately I don't remember the name) that numbed the mouth for a short while. I would take one or two tablespoons, swish it around my mouth and swallow it so that it coated my throat as well (of course it tasted kind of awful); but it worked long enough that I could eat (soft foods, nothing that required a lot of chewing, as you might bite your tongue or lip.) Of course I couldn't taste anything, but it was enough to get some nutrition in me.
I'm sorry, this was so long ago, I don't remember the name of the prescription, but you might ask your child's doctor, or even her dentist about getting liquid Novacaine (apparently, at least at the time, it was quite common for children's denstists to use liquid Novacaine, rather than administer it via a shot). At the very least, it will allow her to eat a little something without losing weight or nutrition. Good luck!
Try Aloe Vera juice she can drink, but have her swish in her mouth. That might help. The more natural it is, the better. If you can find someone who sells Herbalife from home, they might have some. Good luck.
We just went through this a couple of weeks ago. My son was feeling better after about 5 days or so. Hopefully your little girl is already feeling better. He ate very little for around 2 days. We stuck with dilute fruit juices (non-acidic, non-citrus). He's not a milk drinker, so we couldn't get him to take the pediasure drinks. Try not to worry about the food or nutritional value, she will be fine for a few days. Just try to keep fluids in her and calories of some sort, whatever will work. If she isn't better yet (after the weekend), I'd head back to the doc for some help. We also dosed with Ibuprofen around the clock for pain relief.
Coxsackie is a huge big deal for the parents and toddlers that have to endure it, but it is "no big deal" from an overall medical point of view, as there are next to never serious complications. However, dehydration and severe pain are frequently part of the picture. My advice:
1. Ibuprofen every six hours without fail - don't let it wear off - use the rectal variety if necessary
2. Let her drink all the milk she wants! Don't worry about solid foods, but your best bets are yogurt, applesauce and smoothies (add some protein powder if you like). She will be perfectly fine without solid food for a few days but she must have liquids. Stick with cold things. Even warm will exacerbate the pain (think of when you drink a warm/hot beverage after spicy food). Of course, an electrolyte mix is great if she will drink it - but not Gatorade because this mix is not geared toward sick kids.
3. Give her a mix of Benadry and Maalox by mouth 3-4 times a day (but not more than this!!): 1/2 tsp of Benadryl for a 15-20 pound child or 1 tsp of Benadryl for a 20-30 pound child plus an equal amount of Maalox (or similar liquid antacid). Ideally she swishes this around her mouth and then swallows, but that's not always feasible with toddlers. If you can squirt it in, pointing the syringe toward different parts of her mouth, that is great. There is a substantial itch component to the ulcers in the mouth, which the Benadryl helps. The Maalox coats and sooths the ulcers. The Benadryl may also make her drowsy enough to catch a few winks!
Most kids who get this severe have between 1-3 days of the worst part of it. Pay close attention to her urination. If she becomes listless or is not urinating a decent amount at least 3 times a day or the severe pain continues go back to your doctor and ask about IV hydration.
Good luck!!
M. T., M.D.
Hi L.,
Just wanted to share with you my own experience. I contracted coxsackie virus as an adult. It was an overwhelming experience. The mouth blisters are very painful, that is probably why your daughter isn't eating. It hurts! If I remember correctly it was about a week before I could eat anything comfortably. And it did seem like a long recovery time. At that time I didn't get much assistance from a doctor either, in fact I had to do my own research to get an accurate diagnosis. I can tell you though that it will pass, feed her bland foods (nothing acidic) and lots of rest. Good luck, I'll be thinking of you.
A.
Hi L.,
I just did some research on this virus. It's the first time I've ever heard of it, but apparently it isn't uncommon. There seems to be 24 different types of this virus. The common name for it is the hand, foot and mouth virus. According to the things I've read, your daughter my also have a sore throat in addition to the mouth blisters which would also make it difficult for her to want to eat or drink. I would imagine because she is unable to eat and drink that bacteria is manifesting in her mouth thereby causing the odorous breath. This virus is said to last for no longer than seven days if it's a mild case. There are other more serious effects of this virus but that the depends on the level of enteroviruses associated with your daughter's diagnosis. I would call the pediatrician back and have a more in depth conversation to make sure nothing is being overlooked.
I took this excerpt from the web site
Infection usually is spread by fecal-oral contamination, although occasionally the virus is spread by droplets expelled by infected individuals. Items like utensils, diaper-changing tables, and toys that come in contact with body fluids that contain the virus may also transmit them to other individuals. Although people of any age can get infected, the majority of patients identified with Coxsackie infection are children.
I'm thinking maybe some of the junk in your home can be cleaned or thrown away. Kids get into everything and wipe their hands anywhere or typically stick them in their mouths. Maybe this is a starting point to get rid of possible contaminants. I mean no offense by this at all. I really hope this helps. Good luck!
T. - single mom of two girls, 19 and 13.
awww...hope it's over soon.
My suggestion is to also ask for a probiotic from your doc and/or a non-sugary yogurt like Stoneyfield plain or vanilla (not much sugar). If you whip it up with a touch of jam maybe she'll eat that. Sugar helps the bad yeast grow, which may be the smell is my guess.
good luck!
Hi L., I have a two little girls ages 3 and 2 and they both had it. Yes, your daughter will have a terrible terrible terrible odor coming from her mouth, because it is an virus that is not getting no type of air with the mouth being closed shut. This virus will take about a week to clear up. The virus is really no big deal because the healing will take its course. Now, my 3 year old had to have some antibiotics for hers because her blisters came outside of her mouth onto her lips and it got infected. My 2 year old caught her virus 2 weeks later and it just went away in about a week. Your daughter drinks a lot of millk because it coats the blisters. I was also told to give pudding and mash potatoes anything without acid in it. There is no need for you to go back to the doctor because it will clear up in a week. First, there is the fever, second,the blister, third,the stanky stanky stanky breath, fourth,blisters hurting really bad, fifth,fever going away, sixth,child getting a little back to normal i.e. eating slowly and last but not least the blisters are all gone. Remember L., whenever a person is sick it always seems to get worse before it gets better. So therefore, it is greater later. Your daughter will be fine.
I would stay away from acid foods, especially citrus fruits. Try the motts freeze pops. They are 100% natural with no added sugar. It will at least help get some vitamins in her. I also agree with the vanilla pudding.
Back in the day, my mom used a little boric acid and water with a sterilized cloth diaper and mop my mouth. Then she would use alum mixed with water with another diaper. She would alternate these procedures peripdically. In the south we called this "thrash".
L.,
My 3 year old son supposedly had this just this past week. The reason I say "supposedly" is we self diagnonosed him. He had a cold sore in the mouth along with a fever and small bumps on his butt, but nothing else. He also didn't want to eat since it hurt, but after 6 days - his appetite is back. We were giving him popsicles and water and anything that was soft. The only thing left of the virus (if he had it), is the bumps on his butt and they are fading and never were a bother to him.
I hope this helps you - we didn't take my son to the doctor as this is our third child and it seems over the years and children, we have learned not to call the doctor about everything - plus webmd.com is very helpful.
Blessings,
L.
Most def go to doctor. No odor is not common with Coxsackie virus and it has been long enough for the infection to go away. She is probably developing a fungual infection now inside the oral cavity and needs a swish and swallow med. Go to MD your daughter needs to get this treated esp. if tears happen everytime she attemots to eat. Until you go to MD vey bland foods. Nothing acidic like tomatoes, orange juice as that could be painful to injest. No sweet, spicy crunchy just bland food. Good luck and I hope your daughter feels better.
My daughter got this last summer when she was 2 also. I think it is the WORST childhood illness!!! The kids are in so much pain when they get this. My daughter also refused to eat. I let her eat as many popsicles as she wanted to try and keep her hydrated. It took at least a week before she started eating again and two weeks for her to be back to normal. I gave her an alternating schedule of tylenol and ibuprofin to help her with the pain and that did a little. I heard from a friend last week that their Dr. prescribed Tylenol with Codeine for her 2 year old. I had not heard of that before, but if you can get something stronger from your pediatrician go for it.
Good luck! The only saving grace is that they only get this once.
My heart goes out to all children & worrying parents who have this terrible virus :( . Milk seems to do best for my daughter, - who is on her second round of it - Yes! that's right...second time in 3 years... She is now 8 years old, & unfortunately drank a bit of her friends drink (friend was sick that night) & boom a day and 1/2 later, she got it.. So beware to all parents - there are different strains of the virus. The 1st time she had it, was aweful, but I said Okay at least she won't ever have to worry about this again. So Imagine my disbelief when I took her to the doctors for a sore throat & the doctor said she has coxsackie,"NOOO!" I feel terrible for my little girl. Lots of milk,& ice-pops. The fever will go away within a couple days & the sores are most painful on the 2nd & 3rd days. Also the pharmacist said there is a rinse the doctor can call in (mine can't call it in, our office no longer approves this method) The rinse is a mixture of lidocaine,beneydryl & malox. Maybe that will help some who can be prescribed it. Lots & Lots & Lots of washing hands after rinsing their cups/spoons/etc.. so parents won't come down with it too! Good Luck & Feeling better will be soon
you should get a good probiotic in powder form and put it your childs drink. Also give her frozen homemade juice popsicles
Hi there, I don't know about the odor but I would try putting Orajel on the sore just before eating. it would numb them enough to allow her to eat but not over medicate her. Also the colder the food the better. Try and blend some yogurt, fruit and honey and freeze them in small Dixie cups with a handle. The Dixie cups tear away easily and that way she gets some nutrition in without actually having to eat. My daughter also had the mouth blisters bad but it should heal in a few days so just try and hang in there.
vanilla pudding might help...anything else I would suggest has been covered by the others...
HI L.,
This has to be one of the most popular posts the last week.....seems everyone's kid has it. I am going to cut and paste my response to the last post:
"I think it probably is hand/foot/mouth with a low fever (101-103) and the sores in mouth and butt pimples. My kid and three others in my care just got over this also. It is definitely going around. I would give Motrin (1 tsp of the children's) every 6-8hrs if he seems to be in pain. Usually the motrin manages the pain better than tylenol. None of the kids in my care had sores anywhere but their mouths, so this is totally normal to not have it on the hands and feet. It doesn't usually last too long. The fevers for all my kids lasted 1-3 days and the sores about a week. Cold pops and ice cream like you are doing and non-acidy drinks like milk or water-down apple. Avoid orange juice, salty, or tomato stuff so they don't burn the mouth sores. Don't worry if your child doesn't have much of an appetite, just push the fluids. If your son's mouth sores become very uncomfortable you can mix benedryl and liquid mylanta/maalox equal parts and dab the sores with a cotton swab to coat before eating. It is a virus and has to run its course, there is nothing for the doctor to give him. Two of the four kids went to the doctor in the beginning before we knew what it was, there is nothing for them to do. If your son seems very sick or runs a high or new fever then give the doc a call to make sure nothing else is going on."
The only thing I don't know about is the odor, but I would guess you aren't able to brush her teeth that great right now with those mouth sores, she probably just has bad breathe, I wouldn't worry about it, especially since you say she is drinking milk. That would give off a foul smell if not rinsed properly. She'll be better in a couple days most likely. Sounds like she has a mild case with just the mouth blisters and no fever anymore. Try to relax and let it run its course, she will eat when she is ready. Good Luck =)
