Hand Foot and Mouth Disease - Holden, MO

Hi J.. Keeping him hydrated is the most important. Pedialyte, gatorade, juice. Jello is a good thing as well as popcicles and juice from cans of fruit. He will let you know as he gets hungry. Offer him dry foods such as toast, crackers or mashed potatoes. Only after he is fever free should you even attempt to offer him any type of dairy products. Hope this helps and that he is feeling better soon!

AWW poor baby! Well J., My advice would be to just keep giving him fluids.. pedialite is great to replenish the electrolytes and they have popsicles you know. I would say if the baby is on an antibiotic or other medicine dont give much to eat until that has had some time to take effect--THIS TOO SHALL PASS!!! good luck!

Hi J.,

My twins had cases of HFM disease last summer and it wasn't much fun at all. And even better, its very common, so chances are you'll get it more than once! A girlfriend told me about a remedy recommended by her doctor which helped the pain of the sores inside their mouths (and sometimes these are hard to see, but usually they are there). You mix 5 ml of Benedryl allergy medicine w/ 5 ml of cherry flavored Maalox (ask your doctor about this first, of course, but apparently its pretty common). The mixture becomes kind of a soothing balm in their throat and gives them relief from the pain. Worked like a charm for my girls.

Re the throwing up, I'd avoid all dairy and especially juice, since both can possibly irritate tummies. I'd push water and, if possible, something like Propel diluted a bit with water or pedialyte if he'll take it. I'd also stick as close to the BRATY diet as possible - offering the blandest things you can, until his tummy settles down.

We had it for a full 10 days, which I think is pretty common, so don't expect a super speedy recovery.

Sorry - wish that news was better but you'll get through it!
Good luck!

I'm not familiar with Hand Foot & Mouth... so maybe another mom can help out there. But with vomiting, I'd really just try to push liquids like water, pedialite, and juice mixed with water, maybe even popsicles & jello to keep him hydrated. After his tummy settles a bit and he's handling the liquids without vomiting you should do the BRAT diet. Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast.

I'm so sorry your little guy is so sick. I hope he feels better soon!

You might want to try popsicles too!

Two of my children had hand, foot, mouth disease - the youngest had it at least twice and maybe three times!!! My oldest one had a pretty severe case of it. It was in his mouth and throat too - it didn't make him throw up, but he was very uncomfortable and just didn't feel good for two or three days. HFM is just like chicken pox really - it just has to run its course. Lots of patience, maybe some lukewarm bath soaks, and plain, bland food that won't irritate his mouth. I would not give him any more milk because of his upset tummy, but I would also be very careful with the juice as it might burn a little in his mouth if he has sores there.

At the time, with my first one, the Dr. said he could not go back to daycare until he stopped breaking out. But then when it came to our youngest one (who is now 5), they said that she could stay in day care because she had already exposed everyone before she even started breaking out - go figure.

Anyway, hang in there - it shouldn't take more than a week for him to get back to normal. He may have a touch of the tummy flu too.

Good luck.

First, a 105.1 temperature is not alright. If he is still not keeping any food or drinks down, he is at risk for dehydration, hich at this rate, I would already be concerned about. Check for dark urine, his urine should be clear colored if he is hydrated and also check to see if his eyes are sunken in and dark rings around his eyes. If any of these signs are visible, and he is not holding down fluids, you need to get him to the E.R. to have them give him I.V. fluids. Don't worry about the food right now, that is the least of your worries. The hunger will come back after the hydration is taken care of and the virus has ran its course.

My son had hand, foot and mouth about three months ago. He had a high fever also. My doctor says sometimes kids will throw up due to the high fever. His advice was pedialyte or gatorade. If he wouldn't drink the pedialyte, to try the pedialyte pops. They're throats are really sore, so things like crackers might hurt and cause him to gag, then throw up. My son's virus lasted about 7 days. After that he went right back to normal. It's no fun, but he'll get through it and gain any weight he lost right back when he begins eating again. Hang in there!

My 14 month old boy just had it last week. He only threw up a few times but was very feverish and would cry non-stop (and I really mean scream) for about 15-20 minutes then pass out (restlessly) for about the same amount of time. This went on for over 24 hours end even though our pediatrician had told us it was a virus and to treat with Tylenol and Motrin, it wasn't working. We wound up taking him to urgent care on Sunday and they gave us Tylenon with Cocine, which helped him sleep. He slept almost non-stop for 36 hours and then was almost back to his normal happy self. The big difference is that our son weighs 30 pounds + so we were not concerned about weight loss, just dehydration. Our Dr recommended popsicles and ice or really cold water because it would soothe the throat.

Bananas, rice, applesauce, and dry toast and watered down juice or pedialyte. You might also try the suppository analgesics to reduce fever. Kind of gross, but you don't have to worry about them throwing it up.

You might check with your ped. but ours says BRATY (add yogurt) and not to give them anything by mouth (including water) until they've not thrown up for an HOUR. I didn't like that idea at all, but I really think it has helped. I really don't know much about HFM disease. I hope he's feeling better!

K.

When he is having trouble keeping things down, I would suggest alternating Motrin and Tylenol. You can get an Acetaminophen suppository (in the rectum) for when his fever is starting to climb again, and he'll throw up anything you give him. It's called Fever-All. I've usually found it at Walgreens. Keep in touch with your Dr.
B.

My son has hand foot and mouth disease right now too. You have to push the fluids. I gave my son some vanilla pudding that was cool. I had to put ice in all of his drinks so that if felt good on his throat. My son only had to fever for a little over a day. Your son may be vomitting so much because HFMD causes a general feeling of discomfort and thats how your son responds to it. This is the website I went to to find more out about this disease because I had no clue what it was. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/revb/enterovirus/hfhf.htm

I hope your son gets better soon!

My sister just called me the other day and told me that my niece (16 months) had this as well. She said that same thing, throws up everything or just won't eat period and horrible stinky diapers. That is all I can tell you but at least another child is doing the same!

J., i read where someone had already offered up the maalox/benedryl conconction. my sister used that for my nephews and it works wonders. not only does it sooth their tummy w/ the maalox but the benedryl helps take the edge off. my concern is the high fever. is the fever continuiously running 105? that's TOOO high. and i'd be calling my PED everytime it's that high. i know my PED told us that if ever the temp went above 104 (meaning) 105 to call it in b/c that's too high...

also i wouldn't offer juice at all b/c of the acids. esp if there's blisters in the throat it will burn going down and def burn coming up. pedilyte would be your best offer. they have pedilyte pops now too. gatorade would be a good 2nd choice b/c it's way less acidic than juice.

sure hope your lil one is feeling better soon. but def sticking to the BRAT diet as others suggested (bananas, rice, applesauce, toast) should help as well. get well wishes coming to you...

Hi J.,

I don't want to alarm you, but watch your little guy very closely (as I'm sure you are), as we went through this last week with our 13 month old son. He started running high fever on Monday so we took him to the doctor, who said he had a sore in his throat and diagnosed him w/hand, foot & mouth disease and sent us home. By Tuesday his fever had been running anywhere between 104 and 106 (even w/Tylenol & Motrin) and he started vomiting, so we took him to the ER. They ran tests and found that he had pneumonia, double ear infections, was dehydrated, and had strep infection in his blood (that's where the sore in his throat came from), so they admitted him, and we spent the rest of the week in the hospital getting really strong antibiotics and fluids via IV. Again, I don't want to alarm you, as your situation could be totally different than ours. It just sounded very similar, so I wanted to let you know what we experienced, just in case you begin seeing some of the same things. Good luck, and I hope your little guy gets to feeling better real soon.

My doctor said milk is fine but avoid water because it has no nutrients in it. If he keeps the milk or food down for a little bit at least he is getting something from it. My son had h,f and m but I don't recall that much throwing up. Will he drink gatorade or pedilyte? Those are also good sources of fluid.

Hi J., anytime you child has a fever don't give him any milk products. When he throws up no matter what the cause (ie. milk, fever) restrain from giving him anything to eat or drink (especially milk) for at least an hour. His stomach is very upset and will most likely cause him to throw whatever you just gave him up again. Let his stomach calm down before giving him something else. Bland foods are recommended until he is done throwing up, like crackers, mashed potatoes, plain noodles, etc. Refrain from the milk products until the fever is completely gone. Do give him pedialyte or watered down juice. Water down the juice to reduce the acid which can make him vomit again. When he throws up after giving him tylonal or whatever fever reducing medicine, if it has been fifteen minutes or longer, then don't give him anymore. If it hasn't been fifteen minutes then give him some more after about 30 minutes. If he keeps throwing up, you may have to use a suppository to reduce the fever instead of oral medicine.
We have a rule to this day, and my girls are tweens now, that they don't get any milk products for 24 hours after they've thrown up last and/or fever is gone. They hate it at the time, but thank me later when they aren't throwing up anymore. Good Luck and God Bless.

Ok, do not give him milk until his fever breaks. And the citris of some juices can make him throw up also, so be careful there. water, juices w/ only 10 to 15% juice, popcycles, vitiman water...stuff like that will keep him hydrated. next, go to wal-mart (or somewhere like that) and look for a soft ice pack, or an ice pack that is divided into small sections (these are usually like a sheet of 2x2 sections that you can freeze and then cut as big or small as you need) you will probably have to go to the camping section of the store. before you give him his meds, put in a movie, put the ice pack on his stomach or back (you can do both in case of a high fever) and then wrap him in a comforter.....he'll get cooled down fast and may get a chill. let him sit there for a couple of minutes and then give him the meds. I promise you they will stay down!!! the ice packs on his back will cool down the blood flowing thru his body and cool his belly down and keep the meds from comming back up. it may sound silly, but I PROMISE this works! My ex-mother in law taught me about using ice packs and when my son got what I thought was the flu and ended up being spinal minigitious (sp?) the ice packs saved his life and keep the blood flowign to his brain cooled enough that he suffered NO brain damage! I have 5 kids and have ued ice packs on all of them when they got a high fever and I needed to keep meds down to help them get better. one more thing, did anyone ever tell you that you can alternate tylenal and ibuprofin? tylenal is every 4 hours and ibuprofin every 6, so you can start out with tylenal and then in 2/3 hours give him the ibuprofin and keep alternating to keep the fever down. I learend that from the ER doctor when my 4yr old got influenza this last year. in 19 years of parenting, no one ever told me that and it really helped.
good luck and God Bless!

Your biggest concern is keeping the fever down and making sure he doesn't become dehydrated.

If he's lethargic you should consider taking him in to urgent care. (Lethargic - not just tired. Like if he doesn't show interestin even his most favorite things, just sits there like a lump...) They will give you some fab. electrolytes that you can't get in the store. We ordered a case from Enfamil online, Enfalyte. Use a medecine syringe and give him a teaspoon every 5 minutes. You can do this with regular electrolyte too. Not sports drinks though - too much sugar.

Fever cap:
I cut the snap-crotch bottom off an old onesie to use it as a cap. It fit more loosely than a regular "cradle" cap. I soaked it with luke-warm water (so it doesn't seem cold and shock him when you put it on) and it cools with evaporation... cooling the fever. Worked like a charm and he kept it on too.

And you're lucky. It's summer. Strip him down and let him play in hose water to cool him off. Even if he just sits on the patio and it flows around him and he splashes in a big pot or bowl. Wet = cool.

15 minutes of sunshine will help too. Boost his immunity with some extra D vitamin production.

And ask your Dr. about pro-biotics. Good bacteria that will help his body combat the bad.

Then, just try to keep him as comfortable as possible - and away from others so they don't get it!!

Hang in there Mamma!

T.

We just had hand foot and mouth disease last week, and I feel for you! Is he acting hungry? I wouldn't feed him if he isn't. It is very painful for them to eat. My son continued to eat his bottles, but not his meals. We had a fever for four days, and then on the fifth day he was back to normal, but both my son and daughter got it and neither one of them ever threw up... I don't know about that part of it.

My daughter had this same problem when she was 2 years old, and your Dr. is right, it has to take it's course. Did they give you something for the sores in his mouth? If not, you need to call the Dr. and ask for that. Right now you should not give him any milk or milk based products for 2 reasons:
1. with the fever, the milk will curdle in his stomach and he will throw it up. Do not give him milk until the fever is below 100.1
2. The milk will only agitate the inside of his mouth and throat and make the pain and discomfort worse.
These are the things I learned with my daughter- took about 2 weeks to run its course.
Good luck! and be patient

Good luck- it is a tough one for little ones to go through!

J.,
I went through a bout of this with my children and they too were throwing up thier tylenol. If you go the the pharmacy and ask your pharmacist for Childrens tylenol Suposittories (sp)they will allow you to get the medicine into your little one with out him having to ingest it. Also by lowering his fever his appitie may increase. Yes I know it seems a little yucky to have to give your baby a supository, but my opinion was if it makes them feel better it is worth it.

Hope this helps.

J.,
I feel for you. My dtr had it at around his age. I know that she really didn't eat much for a few days. I was told to give her ice cream, pedialyte maybe even popsicles. I know it is scary to think about him losing any weight, but it is so hard for them to eat when their mouth and throats hurt. There is a great resource called Baby 411 (by Ari Brown and I can't think of the other doc) they have a website and might give you some other suggestions about what you can feed him. I remember it took about 5 days to run its course.
E.

I don't recommend giving any dairy products to kids with fevers for that very reason of possible vomiting. Stick with crackers, toast, applesauce and lighter type foods. I wouldn't do too much juice because of all the sugar. Try to do more water and less milk. Also, my pediatrition recommends alternating Children's Motrin/Advil with Tylenol. Start Tylenol and Motrin at the same time then 4 hrs later Tylenol again followed by Motrin 2 hrs after that. You are getting on a schedule of giving Tylenol every 4 hours and doing the Motrin every 6 hours. Be sure to write this down as you are doing the meds or it is easier to go through and write down the times of when to give the meds and stick to that schedule. One of the meds takes the temperature down quick the other keeps it down. They work together. Check with your doctor and ask questions on what he recommends you do if your babys temp gets that high again. I would ask what foods he recommends you feeding him with fevers. Don't be afraid of asking for advice or info from your doctor. They see so many people a day they forget some parents just don't know all the answers or helpful ideas.

My daughter just got over this. It's very contagious so wash your hands and toys, whatever goes into his mouth, frequently.
It's a wait it out thing so there is nothing to do. Just give tylenol and or motrin.
Follow the BRAT plan for the vomiting.

J., If you can get a TBSP of fluid (water, juice, pedialyte) down him per hour that is enough to keep him from getting dehydrated. So even just sucking on a little piece of popsicle would be adequate for someone his size--Jen, RN

My 2 1/2 yr. old grandson had the smae thing at about the same age, and the dr. told my daughter the same thing. It had to run it's course.
We gave him watered down juice, watered down 7up and cold stuff, like jello. The cold seemed to make his throat feel better and it got something in his tummy.
The fever should go down and then spike back up a few times, but don't be afraid to call the dr. and keep calling if you are not satisfied.
It will eventually run it's course, but keep your eye on the fever.
Good luck!

I had that as a child and remember and it was awful, the sore throat and blisters down my throat and in my mouth. It seemed like it lasted a couple weeks, but I can't say for sure. I do remember that popsicles were REALLY great and felt SO good on my throat. I had been getting dehydrated because of not being able to eat because it just really hurt to and I remember getting really weak. The great thing about these days is that they now have available popsicles with some nutritional value to them, so try that. I remember FINALLY being able to eat egg salad because it was soft, chopped very fine, and that tasting good and that helped increase my energy. High fever too, I remember all that. I'd give him clear liquids, things with some nutritional value for now and let him tell you when he is ready for solid food. It is just SO painful to swallow. Cold feels the best on it, but even then its hard to swallow.

This yucky stuff is so miserable and contagious. Hand, Foot and Mouth Syndrome symptoms usually do not include vomiting so it could be that your child also has a second virus such as the stomach flu at the same time. The blisterlike sores in mouth, on palms of hands, soles of feet; mild fever, sore throat, painful swallowing; lasts around 7 days. Increase fluids, popsicles, soft foods and keep giving acetaminophen (Tylenol). There usually isn't any medical treatment unless secondary bacterial infection occurs. A friend told me that she read on her pediatrician's website that this usually only infects kids 3 and under. Take care and just keep giving your baby lots of hugs! Hugs and cuddling help more than we know.

Also, the way I handle all the differing advice is go with the one that seems to be repeated the most. Different things work differently for different people and I'm sure some pediatricians even differ in the advice they give on how to handle the same illness. So I'm adding to the opinion that you should NOT give your baby dairy products until he's feeling better. Also just think about how you feel when your sick and the same applies. I personally would not feel like downing a glass of milk after I vomited. I would stick with clear liquids and popsicles.

As a nurse who works with children, typically when a little one or big child is vomiting you should only offer liquids like all the other moms have mentioned. With his small stature pedialyte is definetly the way to go. You may want to stay away from the real acidic juices because they would be very painful on the blisters in the back of his throat. If he has one he likes you might delute it with water. Keep him going on liquids until he stops vomiting for at least 24 hours. This gives the tummy an opportunity to rest. Then a bland diet, like the brat diet is fine for 24-48 hours and then start introducing his favorite things if he is keeping down the bland diet. A virus runs from 10-14 days, so don't be overwhelmed if he is not feeling totally better in just a few days. It takes a virus a while to run its course. Yes, wash your hands continueously, but you are probably immune as your an adult and have probably had it as a child or was exposed as a child. Your main concern are those children that come by. Throw heavy plastic toys in the dishwasher with no heat dry and that should do it. Good luck J., don't worry he will be alright. Stick to what your Dr perfers to use for pain medication and a fever reducer. There is a reason some dr's perfer one over the other and you may want to ask your Dr or his nurse before making changes. It usually means they have had a bad or a negative result with one and have chosen a safer drug to promote from their office.
Take Care
J.

My son had this same thing. He vomited too because the bacteria got into his system. My doc gave him an antibiotic. Keep him hydrated. We gave dayson jello water, broth and water. Also try abreva. This worked miracles for my son. There is a new medicine out now called Releve ( i beleive that is how it is spelled). neither is cheap but it really helped my son. I hated this illness and pray it never comes back. I know your pain and pray your son gets over it soon.

Dear J.
Hi! I looked the disease up in my medical book that I have
and it says that it is an infection from the coxsackievirus
A-16, which is transmitted from person to person. Don't be around any one with respiratory illness.This disease can cause
convulsions with high fever and can cause permanent brain damage caused by the spread of infection to the central nervous system. I would keep his head wet so it helps keep
the brain cool when my kids run a fever thats what they like.
Try liquid geltatin, puddings and crushed ice and ice cream
and you can get ome pedia light in the baby section to help
so he won't get dehydrated. I would take him to a ear nose
and thoard specilist and I would also go to the health food
store and tell them what your child has they will have something for you to use that will help heal the body. Also
if you can get some Acidophilus so it can help build the good
bacteria up so it can fight against the bad bacteria. I hope
that I have helped you in some way.
Have a great week I will pray that your child will get better.
Take care B. K.

Hi J.

That's sad about your little one... I'm sorry.
One thing I did want to tell you (if you didn't already know) is you can ask your Doctor to prescribe suppositories for the excessive vomiting. My son has run a 105 temp. before and wouldn't stop vomiting. He couldn't keep anything down for days and I was getting really worried so I called my Dr. and he called some in for me and let me tell you, they helped tremendously for him! Don't worry if he isn't eating but you do want to keep fluids down to prevent dehydration. Even if it's tiny sips every hour (I would stay away from any dairy products, they don't settle well for alot of infections). He'll be fine but do try the supossitories. I guartantee you he'll stop vomiting.I know it's uncomfortable for you to insert but he'll get relief and it won't hurt him at all.
Good luck!
L. K

With hand foot and mouth disease, the blisters are really painful, so I would keep it to cold liquids and maybe some pedialyte popscicles. The creamy things like puddings and yogurts will probably upset his sensitive stomach right now. I agree with using the BRAT diet when he starts being able to hold down more. My daughter is sick with a high fever right now too and I think the vomiting might have more to do with the high fever than the hand foot and mouth, so you might want to consider trying motrin. It really does work much better than Tylenol to bring down fever. If you go to www.askdrsears.com and search motrin, it will pull up an article that will help you determine the best dose for your son. You could probably also search hand foot and mouth disease for more info about that illness as well. I do know that hand foot and mouth is, I believe, one of those illnesses that once you get it you usually don't get it again, so that is a positive--maybe a tiny little rainbow in this big dark cloud of illness. I hate when my kids get sick. I just hate seeing them so sick and miserable, and feeling like I can't do hardly anything to make them feel better. The one thing you can do is hold them and spoil them while they are sick, that will give them the most comfort during this time. Good luck to you!