The last 10 days were a nightmare!

We had a family wedding and suddenly the morning of the main event I saw a little one itching her hands. A few dot-like rashes I see and ignore them thinking they may be just insect bites.

We head over to the breakfast counter and there I hear her cry!

She refuses to eat. “My mouth is burning Mumma “.

And yes! The doctor in me wakes up with a loud alarm. Hand rashes and mouth ulcers. Is this HFMD?

I recalled reading a message from the school a few days back that HFMD is rampant, and a warning had been issued to all parents.

Suddenly the diagnosis became clear.

HFMD is a disease caused by the Coxsackie virus and is a self-limiting viral disease seen often among school-going children from 5 months to 5 years age.

As soon as I realized that little A is suffering from HFMD I immediately packed up from the wedding and left for home.

HFMD is highly contagious to other children of that age group and since we were a part of a crowded event, we thought that was the responsible thing to do.

Over the last 10 days I saw the disease evolve in front of me and the challenges we must face.

It starts with a mild fever generally lasting 1 or 2 days, which is low grade and not very troubling.

This is followed by the rashes appearing on day 2 or 3. These rashes are seen on the areas as suggested by the name itself hands, elbows, feet, and buttocks but the most troubling ones are the most common ones- on and around the mouth, lips, tongue, and throat we see blisters.

These are extremely painful, and this makes the child completely avoid food. The children are unable to swallow any solid, hot, and spicy foods. Their appetite is non-existent.

In my case, my child went an extra step ahead. She refused to drink water also.!!!.

Even as a doctor my first instinct was to consult a pediatrician.

There is a lot of information available on social media these days, but each child is different and it’s always best to consult a specialist before giving any medications.

The advice from my pediatrician was not to force the child to eat. Keep her hydrated and see that she passes urine once in 6 hours and some basic medications to ease the process for her.

Some topical lip creams and medicines to soothe her throat were prescribed.

I tried it all. Melted vanilla ice cream, chocolate milkshakes, and watermelon juice with extra water to compensate for her reduced water intake.

Medically, her progression was natural. The rashes dried up on the 5th day and scabs started forming.

Throat and mouth lesions took 4 to 5 days to heal.

And by the 7th day little A was back with an appetite.

Then all around me, questions started arising. When are you sending her back to school Shruti? She is missing way too much! Her habit of going to school will go away. Etc.

The mother in me was ready to send her to school. But the doctor inside wanted confirmation from the pediatrician.

When I enquired, I was told that until the scabs don’t fall she can transmit the infection to other kids. I was a little shocked. Maybe awareness in me was also lacking.

That’s when I messaged her teacher and informed her, that I won’t send her unless all her skin lesions have gone. That was my responsibility. The other children shouldn’t be infected.

Seeing the child not being able to eat for almost 4 days is a harrowing experience. As a doctor, I’ve been made aware that a small mistake of sending the child earlier than required to school or with persisting symptoms can prove such a problem for the other children.

That’s when I realized, As a mother in this post-COVID world, there will be so many questions and concerns about missing school and our instinct to send them back at the earliest will always push us to send them to school either with a running nose or a low-grade fever or maybe even a mild cough.

But before doing that, can we just spare a thought for the other children around who may not be just about ready to fight yet another virus from a classmate!

Let’s prevent the transmission of these highly contagious diseases by taking some basic precautions like keeping the children indoors until they are symptom-free and cleared by the pediatrician to go to school.

Each one of us will then thank each other for a sickness-free day, week, and month for our precious little children.

Dr. Shruti R Rao

MBBS MD Anaesthesia.