Chennai: Hand, mouth infection cases up; doctors say no need to worry

CHENNAI: Painful red blisters in the mouth, throat, hands, feet and diaper area of children are making parents make anxious calls to the doctor’s office and paediatric hospitals across the city for an emergency appointment. But the blisters, often accompanied by low-grade fever, decreased intake of food, sore throat and irritability is a self-limiting viral infection that requires no treatment, doctors said.
“Things I prescribe for most patients is ice-cream, fruit juices, milkshakes and curd,” said Kanchi Kamakoti Childs Trust Hospital senior paediatrician Dr S Balasubramanian. “Some children may require antihistamines if the rashes are itchy,” he said.
The reportage for this disease is high because most parents fear the rashes could be chickenpox, dengue, or scrub typhus. While there is no registry to show the exact number of cases, doctors say they see anywhere between two to five cases every day.
The condition, doctors say, is also not related to foot-and-mouth disease found in farm animals and rarely affects adults.
The spike in infections began a week to ten days after schools went offline but is now common among toddlers too. “When older children catch the infection, they give it to toddlers at home. “When children complain of sore throat some parents assume it to be a bacterial infection and administer amoxicillin. This can result in complications such as diarrhoea and antibiotic resistance,” Dr Balasubramanian said.