Hand, foot and mouth disease

Hand, foot and mouth disease is a common viral illness in tamariki.

Human hand, foot and mouth disease isn't related to foot and mouth disease in animals.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons

Hand, foot and mouth disease can affect anyone. It's most common in pre-school tamariki.

Hand, foot and mouth disease is more common in warm weather but it can happen at any time of year.

Symptoms start about 4 to 6 days after infection with the virus. Your child may have a mild fever for 1 to 2 days before other symptoms appear.

Blisters

Small blisters usually appear first around the mouth, on the gums and on the sides of the tongue. Your child may complain of a sore mouth or throat. They may also go off their food and refuse fluids. 

Small blisters can appear on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet. Some tamariki may also get a rash around their bottom. The rash can appear anywhere on your child's body. 

These blisters are not usually itchy or painful. They usually go away after 7 to 10 days.

See more images of hand, foot and mouth disease.(external link)

Other symptoms

• Loss of appetite.
• A sore throat.
• Drooling.
• Headache.
• Tiredness.

Tamariki with hand, foot and mouth disease usually get better in about 3 to 7 days. Sometimes the rash lasts a bit longer.

Call Healthline on 0800 611 116 or take your child to your healthcare provider if:

• they develop a rash and you don't know what's causing it
• they can't drink because of a painful mouth
• they have fewer than half of their normal wet nappies
• you're worried about them.

If your child has seen a healthcare provider but they are getting worse, go back to a healthcare provider. 

Hand, foot and mouth disease is very easy to catch.

It spreads from person to person by coughing or sneezing. You can also get it from contact with mucus, saliva, blisters, or the poo of an infected person. 

Keep your child at home if they are unwell or have blisters. Keep them at home until all the blisters have dried.

Hand washing or sanitising helps decrease the chance of spreading the infection. This is because the virus is in poo, blisters and saliva, and from a runny nose.

Take special care to wash or sanitise hands after contact with poo as the virus can be in poo for several weeks. 

Food and fluids

• If your child's mouth is sore, they might like cool drinks and ice blocks. 
• Make sure they have plenty to drink. Offer small amounts of fluid often.
• Your child may not feel like eating much. Their appetite will return as they start to get better.

Medicine

There is no specific medicine to treat hand, foot and mouth disease. 

If your child with hand, foot and mouth disease is miserable, you can give them paracetamol. Follow the dosage instructions on the bottle. It's dangerous to give more than the recommended dose. Never give your child aspirin. This may increase the risk of Reye syndrome – a rare and serious illness.

See our paracetamol dose calculator.