The hand-foot-mouth disease name was derived due to the development of non-scratchy rashes on the palms and soles of the legs and even oral sores. Normally occurring in under-10 years infants, at times even adults and adolescents are affected. Majority of the grown-ups have immunity against the coxsackie A virus as they have had prior exposure to the disease during infanthood. Adults when infected with the disease have a tendency to exhibit milder version of the symptoms in comparison to kids.

Coxsackie Causes:

• It is generally caused due to the coxsackie A or occasionally due to the coxsackie B (enterovirus 71) virus. These viral forms mostly are airborne diseases that are contracted while an infected person coughs or sneezes.
• Being exposed to fluids that are emitted from sores, saliva or feces of an infected individual. The virus is known to remain in the feces for about a month’s time following recovery.

Coxsackie Symptoms:

Symptoms normally start appearing about three to seven days subsequent to being infected by the virus.

• The disease initiates with the appearance of fever, lowered appetite, followed by pain-causing oral sores and non-scratchy rashes along with blister formations on the hands, feet and at times in the buttocks, genitals.
• Subsequent to 12-36 hours, the reddish patches would turn into yellowish-red ulcerous growths in the mouth, found in the areas around the roof, tongue and the inner part of the cheeks. Painful in nature, they could cause major difficulty in eating, drinking and swallowing.
• One to two days afterwards, the sores start developing in the fingers, palms, soles of the feet, reaching buttocks and genital region that would last for three to six days. They are smaller-sized as compared to the chicken pox sores.

Diagnosis & Tests:

• The doctor would carry out a detailed examination of the disease and would be able to conclude the presence of the disease on the basis of the age, pattern of the signs appearing and the general appearance of the sores.
• A swab taken from the throat region or a feces sample could be taken to confirm the presence of the enterovirus.

Coxsackie Treatment:

• Taking rest, consuming loads of fluids and taking acetaminophen.
• If the child is having fever or throat soreness, then paracetamol is given for allaying the pain and lowering the temperature. Infant acetaminophen could be given to the child. Though, aspirin should not be administered to those below sixteen years of age.
• In case the sore gets infected due to scratching, then antibiotics could be given.
• In pregnant women that get the disease just prior to delivery, there is a 65% likelihood of the disease being transmitted to the newborn. The babies would experience mild symptoms or in extreme situations get liver or heart infection. Newborns that are 2 weeks or lesser are at heightened risk of the vital organs getting infection leading to potentially fatal outcome.

Possible Complications:

• Dehydration as the development of the sores might lead to difficulty in swallowing and drinking.
• Sores becoming infected due to scratching.
• In rare cases leading to viral or bacterial meningitis, encephalitis that are potentially life-menacing situations.

Coxsackie Prevention:

• Maintaining adequate hygiene, regularly washing hands after visiting the loo, after touching diapers and prior to making any meals.
• Not to share utensils with infected individuals, ensuring shared work areas are kept germ-free.
• Avoiding close physical contact like hugging, kissing with infected persons.
• Keeping the kid away from school or playschool during illness.

Chickenpox generally has no grave consequence amongst children in good health. However, it could lead to certain complications during pregnancy, in newly born babies, teenagers, adults and in those having depleted immunity that saps the body’s capacity to combat infection.

If one has formerly had chickenpox, then it is unlikely for it to relapse. However, the virus remains within the system for protracted periods of time, long after one has gained complete recovery. If it re-activates then it has the capacity to lead to shingles that can be an agonizing viral infection.

Chickenpox Causes:

The varicella-zoster virus is known to be the offender that is responsible for causing chickenpox. It rapidly proliferates and could be contracted during coughing, sneezing or sharing eatables of an infected person. If one accidentally touches the fluid that oozes out from the chickenpox eruption, then one could contract it.

An infected individual could unknowingly transmit the virus even prior to becoming symptomatic. Chickenpox is highly contagious from the time periods of two to three days prior to the rash appearing till the time the blisters have scabbed over.

One is at a heightened risk of developing chickenpox when one has no history of the illness and not been inoculated by the chickenpox vaccine. Living in close quarters to an infected person, could raise one’s chances of getting chickenpox.

Chickenpox Symptoms:

The preliminary signs of chickenpox mostly include fever, headaches and soreness in the throat. The infected parent or the infant might be experiencing sickness, fatigue and loss in appetite. The typical chickenpox rash normally surfaces nearly one to two days subsequent to the initial symptoms commencing. In some infants, the chickenpox rash would appear with no fever or other initial signs.

It generally takes around two weeks for the chickenpox symptoms to start surfacing subsequent to having had contact with an infected person. This time phase is known as the incubation phase.

With the appearance of the reddish chickenpox spots, it normally requires close to two days for the spot to pass through the varied phases that comprise of the blister phase, eruption phase, dry out phase and scabbing over phase. In an interval of every five to seven days, there would be newer appearances of spots.

One could get back to routine ways of life after all the blisters have scabbed off which normally takes nearly ten days following the initial appearance of the symptoms.

Other ailments might have analogous symptoms resembling chickenpox. Hence, one might falsely believe that chickenpox has resurfaced when in actuality one might have been suffering from two diverse infections.

Diagnosis & Tests:

After delving into the signs and performing a detailed examination, the doctor would be able to diagnose the disease.

Healthy infants displaying chickenpox signs might not require paying a visit to the doctor’s clinic, as quite often the infant’s symptoms could be explained via the phone to the doctor. In this way, the child would not need to step out of the house and hence significantly lowering the risk of cross-infection to others. However, one needs to confirm with the doctor to find whether the child would be required to pay a personal visit.

Youngsters, adults, expectant women and those with health ailments would have to visit the doctor. This is particularly crucial during pregnancy as chickenpox in the initial phases of gestation might lead to congenital anomalies. One would need to make a call to the doctor’s clinic for booking an appointment and to talk about the necessity to undertake any measures to avert the transmission of the virus on arrival. For instance, the clinic staff might right away direct the infected patient to the examination room instead of waiting in the lobby to avoid any spread of infection.

Chickenpox Treatment:

Most often infants and grown-ups do well with home treatment that comprises of taking ample rest, having fever-subduing and itchiness-allaying medications. By soaking in oatmeal baths could really assuage the itchiness.

Those ailing with long-lasting diseases or other medical conditions might require chickenpox treatment. Such patients might require IG or immunoglobulin treatment or virus-combatant medications. These might be prescribed by the doctor immediately following exposure to the virus to assist in faster recuperation.

Chickenpox Prevention:

One could avert chickenpox by getting inoculated with the chickenpox or varicella vaccine. Generally doctors advice 2 dosages of this vaccination, in case of infants that are one year and above, in good health and no history of chickenpox.

Children in the older age bracket and adults that have no history of chickenpox infection and not being inoculated would require two doses.

Majority of infants don’t experience reaction following vaccination. If the child had a grave or protracted ailment, one would need to speak to the doctor regarding if the child should be vaccinated. Such infants might experience an ill-reaction due to the vaccine.

If one has been close to an infected person and had no earlier chickenpox episode or the vaccination, one might still manage to dodge the illness by getting a shot of the chickenpox antibodies or by immediately going in for the vaccination.

In atypical situations, even vaccinated persons or those with a past of the disease might catch the infection. In that situation, a milder version of the sickness normally takes place with lesser blisters and signs. This is known as a breakthrough infection.

One must not purposefully expose the infant to the chickenpox infection. There are some parents who consider it safe for infants to undergo the illness when they are young that is a false notion is as even young infants might face complications due to this illness.