Baby Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease Symptoms

As a parent raising a three-year-old, I can't help but be sensitive about my child's health. Recently, the childcare facility where we drop off our child when we go to work sent home a notice asking for special attention regarding hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD). At the time, I didn't know much about HFMD in babies, so I later looked into the symptoms and prevention methods for baby hand, foot and mouth disease.

1. Key Information

After learning about the symptoms and prevention of baby hand, foot and mouth disease, I felt relieved knowing I could take steps to protect my child, whose immune system is weaker than an adult's. I'd like to share this information with all of you as well. HFMD is known to be highly contagious, so if your child goes to places where many children gather—such as kindergartens, daycare centers, or kids' cafes like ours does—please pay special attention. In particular, it has been reported that the number of children visiting hospitals with HFMD symptoms has increased tenfold compared to last year, so it's best to be cautious in advance.

For those unfamiliar with HFMD, it is known as a condition where ulcers form inside the child's mouth or blistering rashes appear on the hands and feet. While that is the textbook definition, the symptoms of baby HFMD these days manifest in various ways beyond this, making it very difficult to distinguish from other illnesses. In particular, many people seem to confuse it with chickenpox. Additionally, HFMD is known to occur frequently during summer and autumn like the current season, so there is a need to be vigilant.

The cause of baby HFMD is known to be the Coxsackievirus and Enterovirus. Infants and toddlers with weaker immune systems who attend kindergartens, daycare centers, or visit group settings like kids' cafes end up infecting each other, causing the disease to spread among many children. With so many dual-income families like ours these days, many households have no choice but to place their children in childcare facilities, and in this social environment, the contagiousness of HFMD is all the more significant.

Even outside of kindergartens, daycare centers, and kids' cafes, HFMD can be transmitted at multi-use facilities such as water parks and other water play facilities where children gather in groups, so please be careful. When HFMD is transmitted in such places, various symptoms can appear in babies, including vomiting, fatigue, fever, blistering rashes, and diarrhea.

2. Detailed Explanation

If several of the above symptoms occur at once, you can consider it baby HFMD. Furthermore, if the child is also not eating well along with these symptoms, it is advisable to have them hospitalized right away.

Baby HFMD symptoms are known to gradually improve after about a week; however, since children have different immunity than adults and may not be able to eat properly due to the symptoms, it is important to monitor carefully and consider hospitalizing the child if necessary. Earlier, I mentioned that HFMD is a condition that can also cause blisters inside the mouth—some people mistake this symptom for a simple canker sore (stomatitis). However, stomatitis and HFMD present differently, so it is important to distinguish between them.

In the case of HFMD, blisters can appear not only in the mouth but also on the hands and feet. When they appear inside the mouth, they tend to form on the sides of the tongue, whereas with stomatitis, blisters typically appear on the oral mucosa, lips, or mainly on the gums. Both conditions can present with fever as a symptom; HFMD tends to cause a low-grade or high fever, while stomatitis only very rarely causes a slight fever. Knowing these differences in advance will prevent you from confusing HFMD with stomatitis.

Finally, to share prevention methods for baby HFMD: it is best to avoid multi-use facilities such as swimming pools, community centers, and kids' cafes as much as possible. However, for unavoidable places like kindergartens and daycare centers, it is recommended to practice thorough personal hygiene after visiting. Additionally, to prevent the spread of infection among many children, teachers working at daycare centers and kindergartens are advised to wash their hands thoroughly after changing diapers. Since learning about these prevention methods, I have been making an effort to practice better personal hygiene after picking up my child from daycare, and I hope you will keep the above information in mind as well.