Hand, Foot And Mouth Disease

Notorious Bob said on 14 May 2012

If this disease is "mild in adults" I'd hate to imagine anything that is "acute"!! As a 46 yr old who's never had chickenpox I think I'd rather have that! I'm into day 4 now and the blisters on my feet are excruciatingly painful. I look like something out of a zombie horror movie. Also have a lot of blisters on my bum, the back of my head on my scalp, the back of my throat and little pin prick blisters on my hands which hurt more than they itch.

But it's my feet that are the worst. I can hardly walk and putting any pressure on them, like resting them on the floor or each other, causes a mounting wave of pain. Seriously, I'd rather have chickenpox.

Amazingly enough the doctor had me drive to the hospital for a diagnosis and then the doctor there basically couldnt care less. Basically if youre unlucky enough to get this you're pretty much on your own.

Looking forward to being able to walk again without the intense pain!

julesie14 said on 29 February 2012

My 4yo son had a mystery virus 2 weeks ago with a high fever, very sore throat and a rash on his stomach. A&E discounted meningitus (phew!), doctor thought it might be shingles but he got beter within 48 hours so we never really knew..
A week later I had a seriously painful throat and husky/lost voice and was very tired all week but carried on working. At the weekend I was really fatigued and had a fever, sweats, chronic back pain and a headache. I also had acough and a really bad sore throat - but a different kind of throat pain to the previous week. Monday I went to work feeling low and clammy, Tuesday I felt a lot better in myself but developed a swollen mouth/ulcers on lips.Tues eve nticed tingling in hands and feet was developing into little red spots which feel like I'm walking on stinging nettles, not nice!
Have taken the day off today on account of feeling clammy and contagious now that I realise what I have got. I spoke to my doctor who suggested it wasnt serious although I may get some joint pain and there was no need to stay off work unless you are feeling unwell. He said that most adults would have had this when they were little but all my friends and family say they havent really heard of it before and dont think thatthey have had it?!
I would definitely agree that this is a nasty bug and not mild in my experiance!

teks said on 09 February 2012

I am helpless, my 15 yrs old daughter, she suffer this virus just this week, i feel so bad looking at her foot, and hands. my question what is lookalike when these blisters gets better, is there a cream to cure? thank you

Puggers39 said on 27 January 2012

I have just recovered from HFM. It was far from a painless rash! You could feel the pain before the spot appeared which then became a small red pimple. This then grew into a fluid filled blister - the largest one about 5mm in diameter. The ones on my hands filled with blood and plasma and the ones on the feet with a yellow fluid. The GP game me steriod cream and said to take painkillers. I could not wear shoes or bend my fingers for 3 days. The worst part was the blisters at the back of the throat! I hope I never have this again. My husband had almost none of the same symptoms but apparently if you are prone to excema then you have a much worse experience than others. I have no idea where we got this from as neither of our children had it but I wonder if they transfered it to us.

jknigh said on 05 January 2012

I have Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease, and I am 7 mos pregnant. I agree with the previous posters who stated that it is not mild in adults. The blisters on my hands and feet are incredibly painful, but did not seem to bother my 2 yr old daughter who I caught it from. I have found no relief other than constant icepacks on my hands and feet. I feel that the adult version is in fact more severe, and more painful. I have not found any topical agent that stops the pain.

ADunsire said on 03 January 2012

I had my almost 2 year old grandson with me at Christmas. At first we thought he might have chicken pox but he seemed to be bothered mainly by what we thought was just an ulcer on his tongue. My daughter said he had been around a couple of children in Inverness who had hand, foot and mouth but we didn't think that was what it was. How wrong we were! He's fine but I now have it and feel dreadful. I've had uncontrollable shivering and night sweats and now have blisters on my hands and ulcers in my mouth. Also have the runs and no appetite and tiredness. I also have a cough which has returned but I don't think this is connected. Thankfully only a few blisters on my feet. If this is mild I'd hate to have the severe form. Due to return to work tomorrow so waiting on NHS 24 to advise me if it is okay to do so.

mdwright1032 said on 31 December 2011

I am a 32 year old male who had some family over for xmas. My sister in-law works at a daycare and apparently got the virus from irresponsible parents sending their kids to the daycare ill. She didn't know at the time but she spread it onto several family members including me.

I had a bad fever with horrible chills a couple of days after xmas. Fatigue, appetite loss, just feeling sick all followed. I woke up yesterday, with itchy hands and soreness in my feet. As the day progressed, I started getting red spots on my hands and they ached when I used them. The bumps turned into blisters by that night and now I have missed 2 days of work this week with no signs of improvement.

This is nasty and would not wish it on my worst enemy. This may be a new strand because this is not "mild."

dookie said on 31 December 2011

I am currently suffering from HF&M, started with really bad fever and rigors 3 days ago. 2 days ago thought i had tonsillitis as i had sore throat and pus on tonsils - off to doctors for penicillin... got home and found red spots on my hands, felt like little burns or nettle stings. Yesterday checked my throat again and ive got little red spots across the roof of my mouth, ulcers in front of my tonsils, and sore along the sides of my tongue. Hands are still coming out in new spots with are both itchy and painful. Nothing really on the feet, just a small patch of redness. My daughter had a couple of blisters on her fingers, but shes started crawling so not sure if thats all connected. I agree that this is NOT the mildest of viruses for adults, guess it just hits some harder, im taking regular analgesia, anti-histamines, and using difflam spray on my throat and it still hurts like hell!!!

HKDK said on 29 December 2011

My 2 year old daughter caught this in March and had a few difficult days but recovered well within a couple of weeks. She had spots on hands, feet, legs and nappy area and in and around mouth.I was about 4 months pregnant at the time and did not catch it.

mal48 said on 16 December 2011

I am 63years old and caught HFMD from my 4year old grand daughter.It is anything but mild and I have never felt so ill in a long time.The blisters on my hands, feet and Knees I could cope with , but the vomitting and excrutiating adominal pain was hard to bear as were the blisters under my dentures I am now into about day 10 and it is the first day out of bed in the last 5.
I had never heard of HFMD until this last few days but I believe from my daughter it is rife in the primary schools in the Isle of Man where I live..

princessofdarkness said on 15 December 2011

i currently have two children with this a three year old and a two year old. One has it in her mouth slightly but doesn't seem to bother her other tha saying once that it was sore. She has had it for three days now. One just started today and seems fine also. Apparently a few people have had it at Nursery so it has been passed about there. I have two more children who do not yet have it one is just eleven weeks old, i hope he doesn't get the mouth ulcers and stop taking feeds.

Chris2725 said on 10 December 2011

My 12 month old boy had this and within 3 days I started to get a feeling like pins and needles in my hands. Within a few hours I noticed spots and blisters forming and can only describe the feeling as like grabbing a load of stinging nettles. Got mouth ulcers too and feeling very tired. I am 32 and have to say the symptoms are not nice... adults do feel it!! Thinking perhaps a new strain too....

shayboch said on 05 December 2011

Both of my children (2 and 1) had this and although they found the blisters a little sore they seemed generally ok in themselves. My eldest struggled a little with the mouth ulcers but within a day or two she was much better and both of their blisters/ulcers healed up reasonably quickly.

Unfortunately I also caught HFMD and definintely do not agree with the statement that it is "mild in adults." I am on Day 6 (since visible symptoms started showing, ulcers + blisters) and I feel very weak and tired (from the lack of food). The blisters have been itchy and uncomfortable but the main issue I've found with this Disease is the mouth ulcers that, literally, covered one side of my tongue. My tongue became swollen and I've been unable to talk properly or eat/drink for days. The ulcers are incredibly sore and very painful and I can't wait for them to heal. For those suffering with the same I've found mouthwash very useful, stings a little but definitely helps.

Maybe it would be worth adjusting the information on this page as, the majority of adults I know who have had HFMD, describe is as very far from mild. It is incredibly painful and, I'm not ashamed to admit, has had me in tears over the excruciating mouth ulcers and I cannot to get over this.

sharewatcher said on 05 December 2011

Seems that this virus has now reached Scotland (Dunfermline and Mid Calder) as my grandsons have now contracted it.

bigbroon said on 03 December 2011

My nephew has just been diagnosed with this. I had surgery on tuesday and have wounds from the stitches etc. One wound has been weeping but been getting cleaned. Will this mean I am more at risk to catching this from him. It is doing the rounds at the local nursery but they haven't been telling the parents, the parents have been telling each other. As it is so contagious should the nursery not be advising parents so they can keep an eye on their kids.

nicola4nick said on 02 December 2011

i have two children so far with hand foot and mouth and its not nice they should let ppl no if anyone in the schools have it so u no

aibie said on 28 November 2011

Gosh, I'm 28, an adult and I can tell, it's not a mild illness at all, I've had it now for about 4 days and although I am lucky enuf,(fingers crossed) not to have sores develop on my mouth, it still feels horrible, I have blisters in my palms and then some scattered itchy ones around my arms from my shoulders to my elbows which makes my life hell..horrendous..I am drained of energy and feel tired all the time. so yeah this is not mild in any way.

adb1 said on 24 November 2011

Present outbreak of this condition in children in Argyll and Bute Scotland

PsyCop said on 16 November 2011

Not mild or short lasting from my experience.

I am 34, and was told yesterday that i had this condition after two weeks of a variable, unpredictable pin prick rash on arms and face, with worst rash now emerging on hands and feet, high temperature, headache, although no mouth ulcers.

I work in mental health and community care, and do not come into contact with children, so unsure as to where i may have picked this up..

Now been prescribed antibiotics four times a day, and told to return to doctor in a week.

RockThunder said on 11 November 2011

My 14month son, has got this and luckily I have got this as well.

My local nursery and doctor have not seen so many cases of this come up, it has never been so prevalent. I wonder if this could be a new strain perhaps?

It does take it out of you and you do get cold/flu symptoms for about a week or so. All the kids + parents in our nct group have had it and generally it seems like they have felt rubbish for a long time.

In my son has got the blisters/spots on his hands feet, mouth legs and bottom. They dribble loads as well. They are generally irritable, lots of snot and a bad cough, trouble sleeping at night. With a low grade temperature. Calpol does help but not much.

My nursery did not have an exclusion policy for this, so he probably picked it up there. There is a hell of a lot of it doing the rounds at the moment.

RockThunder said on 11 November 2011

My 14month son, has got this and luckily I have got this as well.

My local nursery and doctor have not seen so many cases of this come up, it has never been so prevalent. I wonder if this could be a new strain perhaps?

It does take it out of you and you do get cold/flu symptoms for about a week or so. All the kids + parents in our nct group have had it and generally it seems like they have felt rubbish for a long time.

In my son has got the blisters/spots on his hands feet, mouth legs and bottom. They dribble loads as well. They are generally irritable, lots of snot and a bad cough, trouble sleeping at night. With a low grade temperature. Calpol does help but not much.

My nursery did not have an exclusion policy for this, so he probably picked it up there. There is a hell of a lot of it doing the rounds at the moment.

MyOpinion said on 10 November 2011

Not mild in adults in my experience. Started with flu-like symptoms then came the spots and mouth ulcers. Difficulty talking and eating for a day or two. Non-stop headache and sweaty fever. Over a week later and I still feel very tired and unwell.

MyOpinion said on 09 November 2011

Not mild or short lasting from our experience. My 18 month old is still not eating normally after 2 weeks. He was very poorly with high fever and lots of spots around the nappy area. I now also have this illness which began 12 days ago with flu-like symptoms. Ulcers and spots appeared almost a week later and I still feel rough although ulcers and spots now subsiding (thank god!). I think there must be different strains of this virus and the one we have is quite nasty. Will these comments be considered when this page is reviewed?

Saty said on 08 November 2011

My 2 year old daughter contracted this horrible virus which started out as a cold, cough then turned into a fever, the next day I found her waking up drooling over her pillow and she was still drooling when she got up. Her mouth looked as if she had stuffed something in it, when I looked inside her mouth it was full of ulcers inside her lip, all around her mouth and under her tongue. It got worse the next day, she couldn't swallow as her tongue was so swollen, she was gathering saliva under her tongue and drooling. I've never seen anything like this. Its definitely not mild she really is suffering. I can't imagine getting this as an adult. I have a 3 month old baby who has also got a cold I'm hoping he hasn't caught the virus. I wouldn't wish this dreadful disease on anyone.

MyOpinion said on 08 November 2011

This is not a mild or short lasting illness in adults. My flu-like symptoms began around 10 days ago. 5 days later the mouth ulcers began and soon after that the little red spots appeared on my hands and feet. The mouth ulcers and spots are just now begining to disappear but I am still feeling tired, achy and generally unwell. Medical professionals do not seem to agree on when and for how long the disease remains contagious.
The information contained on this page does not reflect my experience of HFMD and should be reviewed and updated.

Sarah L Davies said on 05 November 2011

Mild in adults, I think not. Been able to leave my flat for 3 days as I am unable to put any shoes on due to servere sores. Thought I had a cold until the second day I felt unwell and noticed the first of many sore spots before I went to bed , by the morning I could hardly walk. Even rest is hard as any pressure from bedding is unbearable.

alidmun said on 05 November 2011

I have HF&M right now, and like others would say it has not been mild because I am an adult. Although I haven't got bad symptoms on my hands and feet, my mouth is a different matter. I have a cluster of ulcers on the side of my tongue covered by a huge blister, and it has become infected so I am on anti-biotics. The pain is awful, I wasn't able to talk for 3 days and can't eat. So feeling hungry as well as in pain. My 5 year old daughter also has it, and while has been unwell and had a high fever, her symptoms have not been as bad. I would not wish this on anyone.

gussooooo said on 27 October 2011

my son is 19 months old and he had this...i noticed spots on hands and feet (palms) and i looked it up and found out it was HFMD, so straight away i kept him back from nursery, and i kept him away from the groups we go to, so not to spread it! (thats the most important thing here! keep your children at home! its so annoying when you keep your child back but others dont bother and thats wen you guys will get it too! ) he had small red spots, loss of apetite, spots on tongue, and around mouth and around bum, no fever but thats all really, i made sure i changed bedding straight away bathed him every night and washed hands regularly in day, to keep him clean, and so it doensnt spread to me or others, as i will be useless if i get ill! i wont be able to look after him properly if im il, so keep your little monsters clean while they have the virus!
also the virus stays in his poop for up to 5 weeks after, so to make sure you and other dont catch it, thoroughly wash your hands afterwards, and him!!!

so my son did not have a bad time with it at all really, the spots did not turn into horrid blisters which weep, they just sort of cleared up, and he was ok, and we did not catch it luckily! thought it let you know as most people only write the bad stuff.....so its not that bad guys, i guess it sepends on your immune system?????????????

michael at bovey said on 24 October 2011

I caught it from my grandson: it took four days to incubate and began as a low grade fever, which has continued since then (now 8 days) accompanied by a background headache. After twelve hours the mouth ulcers appeared (they responded to Dentinox) and lasted four days. The blisters appeared on the third day, only a few, mainly on one hand and on feet but also ear lobe. But by day four I was finding that my skin was becoming increasingly sensitive. It felt as though my thighs, chest, back and scalp had been rubbed over with sandpaper - inside of chest as well as outside. Sore neck, loss of appetite and general lack of energy added to the joy. It feels as if it might be beginning to subside now, but this is a nasty little beast with new tricks up its sleeve.

Kel_Belle said on 23 October 2011

Milder in adults?! I think not! I'm on day 3 of this living hell, by far the worst virus I have ever had the misfortune of catching. Started with a really bad sore throat about a week ago which promptly turned into a cold. Over the worst of that then I noticed I had what felt like paper cuts on my hands, thought no more of it till tiny red bumps appeared under my skin along my fingers palms and wrists. Went to he doctor immediately fearing shingles which I know now it surely is not! He diagnosed HMD.
So here I am now, wanting to vomit, itching and in a hell of a lot of pain. The rash spread up one arm, its on my feet and one ear, ulcers in my mouth come and go. The tiny red bumps on my fingers and palms have turned into about 20 rather large and painful blisters under my skin which is really sore to touch and splitting, also fingers have swollen so struggling to bend!
Ice packs will help the itching and tea tree oil has helped slightly with dryness but other than that there aint a lot of help regards this.
I hope that I never experience this again as its debilitating and rather frustrating!
Wish me luck! x

Maevejb said on 22 October 2011

My 1 yr old son got this from nursery, though was undiagnosed for several days. Lots of painful blisters on his bum and round his mouth especially. Bit off form but still managed to eat and drink. 'milder in adults'... I have now got hand, foot and mouth and can honestly say I haven't felt as poorly for a long time. Can't sleep as it is so uncomfortable swallowing. The ulcers at the back of my throat are very sore and I'm struggling to eat much. Tingling in my finger tips and more spots appearing on my hands. I definitely think it's been more severe in me than in my son.

samantha_j90 said on 09 September 2011

Shocked this says milder in adults. My boyfriend had this for 3 days, he was originally taken to a and e because they thought it was meningitis! thank god it wasnt! they then said they didnt know and it was 'random', told us to buy some itch cream and it'll be fine. after 2 nights of no sleep whatsoever, we rang the emergency doctor slightly worried. he had the red blotches all over his hands and feet, itching so bad he couldnt do anything, we had to keep his hands wet. He had like a massive coldsaw on his mouth nose and forehead, in his scalp and were starting to 'weep'. Thankfully the gp new what it was straight away but said he hadnt seen it in adults and because the hospital had told us it was nothing to worry about, the blisters on his chin had popped and infected the area causing Impetigo! He was prescribed antibiotics and cream for the itching and have seen a significant improvment within 4 hours! i agree there should be more information on the net and it should be made clear its deffinitley not milder in adults.

tmathew said on 31 August 2011

I am a 34 yr old Father of 2 young kids, 4yrs and 18 mos old. They both had a low grade fever but then began to develop rashes. We took the kids to our Pedi just last Saturday and both of my kids were diagnosed with HFMD. They had the common symptoms, blisters on mouth, nose, arms, hands, legs and sore throat.

That night I started with a fever, body aches, chills. Through the course of the next 2-3 days I began to have small red rashes in the common areas such as hands, finger tips (which feel like pins), very bad sore throat and then a lot more in uncommon places like my scalp, chest , ears, few on my legs.

I have not gone to the Dr yet to get diagnosed because I'm leaning towards it being the same thing my children got, but have not had the fever for a couple of days but it seems like I wake up with new rashes. Definitely not mild for adults and agree that more studies on adults is needed because no where on the net could I find any case studies similar to mines.

Kids are eating better and rashes are drying up. Waiting for mine to recede...

Alliejohno said on 15 August 2011

my 11 month old son had a few blisters on th outside of his bottom lip for 2 days which we just thought was a sore lip as he had been teething and dribbling lots and shoving his hands in his mouth all th time. He had no other symptoms and was fine otherwise. Then he got a rash on his bum and around his nappy on his legs and back. I thought this was just a teething rash and it kept goin away with sudacrem. Then I noticed a few tiny blisters on his hands and feet and more rash on his legs. It was confirmed Hand foot and mouth disease. He has been eatin, drinking and playing etc as usual.
U must realise that th people who hav commented on here are only the more severe cases. I think there are more mild than serious cases but people dont comment on these. My sister in law had it bad so I am aware it's not nice.

LucyAV said on 05 August 2011

My 2 year old son was very poorly with hand foot and mouth in March this year – fever followed by blisters all over his hands and feet, to the extent that some of his finger and toe nails fell off a few weeks later (fortunately they have grown back). I contracted this from him and contrary to the suggestion that this is a mild illness, it is one of the worst I’ve ever suffered from. Terrible fever, dreadful sore throat, followed by blisters all over my hands and feet that felt like I had pins being stuck in them day and night, making it very difficult to sleep and walk. Thankfully I didn’t get them in my mouth. At the time I was 10 weeks pregnant. I suffered a miscarriage a week later which I am sure was due to this illness – having had a miscarriage before I was looking for signs that the pregnancy was not progressing properly, and everything had been fine until then. Five months later my son now has hand foot and mouth again. I am 7 weeks pregnant and hoping to god that I don’t get it again too. More research needs to be done into this illness, particularly on its effects on pregnant women in the first trimester. Given that the fact I had this illness has not been recorded on my medical record, I wonder how previous research can show that the link with miscarriage is rare. Anecdotally I have heard of another case…

Mom2Be_Houston said on 05 August 2011

To mom in Houston,

I also have similar symptoms to the ones you described. My bumps and blisters are very itchy and painful and also occur in my nose and scalp. I also live in Houston and had to go to two doctor's before I got this diagnosis. Benadryl and Tylenol do very little to help, although I have found some relief from Claritin which allows me to sleep a few hours but not much. I am 12 weeks pregnant also but I think I got the virus from my niece who I believe was misdiagnosed now that I know the signs of hfmd.

mom_in_houston said on 29 July 2011

This is not a mild childhood ilness!! The intensity of the virus for my 2 yr old was very strong. He had blisters on almost every part of his body. He was extreamly uncomfortable and clearly in pain. He was prescribed tylenol with codeine for the pain in his throat and from the blisters on his skin. I have been reading alot on the virus and have not come across anything that describes a few of my symptoms. I developed blisters on and in my nose pretty quickly(after the initial sore throat, malaise and low grade fever). The blisters seep and create a crust that crumbles and falls off as it dries, leaving it to continue the process all over again. It is extreamly irritating and painful. I have also experienced blisters on my scalp, that have the same process. Along with the blisters on my hands and feet and continued sore throat, I am not in good shape. This is a nasty virus that apparently is diffrent for each person. My childrens pediatrician is gettting about 4 cases of this a day for the last 3 weeks. I am amazed that there has been no warning by the media on how contagious this is and how during the incubation peroid of about three days, there are no symptoms and you can infect or be infected. I have sympathy for whomever gets this horrible virus and pray that we(myself and 2 sons) get better soon.

babybanks3 said on 19 July 2011

Hi Im 34 weeks pregnant and just discovered my 6year old has Hand Foot and Mouth - phoned my midwife who has asked me to come and have a blood test so they can test for immunity as apparntly it can carry risks - does anyone know what these risks may be? Im a little worried!

ck1kattn said on 16 June 2011

I got HFMD from my 4 year old daughter, she had symptoms very mild and they even diagnosed her as having chickenpox at first until i went back with my husband, both of us were showing signs of blisters on our hands and feet, also we had a terrible soare throat. This has been an extremly painful illness i am still on my 3rd day and am covered in red spots i cant eat and my hands feel like i have needles in them, I also suffer with psoriorsis and this has broken out along with the blisters and I am in so much pain, I would not say that this is a mild illness!!

Dijane said on 03 June 2011

I have had this now for a week. My hands are so painful - it feels like I have hundreds of splinters in my palms. Hot water really hurts, but running hands under a cold tap does help a bit. I am just so thankful I don't have all the ulcers that so many other people on here have. Although my doctor said I probably got it from my grandchildren, they don't have any spots or blisters - so where did it come from?

warge said on 30 May 2011

I have been diagnosed with this by an A & E doctor, who seemed to think that I had been in contact with farm animals! It is not the mild illness that all the websites but they are most definitely wrong it is very wrong!

whelan123 said on 13 April 2011

I have been suffering with a cough and sore throat for the last week. I went to the doctor, but I didn't get to see my usual GP.. So I was just given some antibiotics to help clear this. But today I have noticed a type of cold sore on the outside of my lip. I have also had loss of appetite and general sick feeling.. Could somebody have been a carrier of it and passed it on, as my sister works in a crèche and some children have got it..

Chrissie13 said on 13 April 2011

Hi
I think I have picked this up too...I am a Beauty Therapist and I thought I had picked up warts after getting the odd blister on my palm...
However it didn't seem to resemble a normal wart or anything i had seen before.
Having read this I am sure I have HFMD. I have chronic mouth ulcers and have had headaches, sore throat, nausea and generalflu-like symptoms for nearly 3 week. I have 2 young children who so far are free from symptoms. Its is definately not mild in adults and is lasting much longer than suggested...Fingers crossed it is on the way out!

PS: Salt and Bicarb of Soda in cooled boiled water appears to help to draw any puss out of the mouth ulcers.... I googled a dentistry advice page and thats what theysuggest as ulcers can become infected by foods etc...

little friend said on 11 April 2011

I have caught this from my 3 year old cousin. Ignore what is said about it being milder in adults. I am in so much pain i can hardly eat anything due to the blisters in my mouth. I cant wear any other foot wear other than flip flops. My doctor has told me it is the worst case he has seem for a long time. I would definately reccomend anti histamine tablets and creams for the rash it seems to calm it down and running your hands and feet under a cold shower.

HannahArrowsmith said on 25 March 2011

This is the 4th time I have had this virus in 5 years - I am 30!!

Its extremely painful (and its meant to be mild in adults), my fingers feel like they have needles sticking in them and along with the huge cold sore I have on my face it is making me feel really miserable. I have found that pirton have helped with the itching and tea tree cream have helped with the blisters on my hands and feet - but I haven't been able to eat anything for 2 days. Best thing is to keep cool and drink plenty and speak to your Doctor about anti-viral meds.

oxfordbloke said on 13 March 2011

I have struggled with mouth ulcers before but never had anything like this- needed prescribed pain killers to swallow. Paracetamol would only give slight relief for an hour. You need to identify foods that don't sting- found Complan energy shakes great that can be made up with water. Ones that need to be made up with milk are too painful to drink so avoid.

I was told that I had chicken pox by a doctor even though I've had it before. You need to be aware that it is very hard for doctors to distinguish skin complaints like chicken pox and hand foot and mouth (as a GP friend told us). Turned out I had hand foot and mouth. In hind sight I can see that the sore throat was a clue, the spots were not itchy on my skin and they did not blister like with pox.

Sit it out- 7 to 10 days seems about right as a duration of symptoms from my experience

morgan28 said on 02 February 2011

Can't believe it says it's milder in adults, the only time I have ever been signed off work was when I caught this, I was off for nearly 3 weeks. I have never felt so miserable, my mouth was literally covered from the inside of my lips, tongue and round the entire gumlin with ulcers (I can't stress enough how painful they are), fever and nausea the whole lot.

Salt water rinse and a numbing throat spray (both of which sting intensly at first) helped along with regular paracetamol and good old rest (and Jelly). For some reason a year later, I'm still prone to a sensitive mouth and get more mouth ulcers than before - not sure if that's a hangover of the original virus?

morgan28 said on 02 February 2011

Can't believe it says it's milder in adults, the only time I have ever been signed off work was when I caught this, I was off for nearly 3 weeks. I have never felt so miserable, my mouth was literally covered from the inside of my lips, tongue and round the entire gumlin with ulcers (I can't stress enough how painful they are), fever and nausea the whole lot.

Salt water rinse and a numbing throat spray (both of which sting intensly at first) helped along with regular paracetamol and good old rest (and Jelly). For some reason a year later, I'm still prone to a sensitive mouth and get more mouth ulcers than before - not sure if that's a hangover of the original virus?

Lullabelle said on 29 November 2010

My 14 month old daughter picked this up at toddlers and I found it difficult to get a diagnosis. She had had a bit of an unsettled weekend, struggling to sleep and just not quite herself but no fever. She then developed a big sore on her chin and lots of spots on her elbows, knees and bottom. I took her to the nurse who diagnosed her with impetigo on the chin and flea bites elsewhere. This was absolute rubbish as the next nurse pointed out you only get a few flea bites not loads. This nurse then agreed about the impetigo and diagnosed chicken pox. By now the spots were really angry looking and had spread over her hands and feet as well as all over her legs and arms. I eventually got a third opinion who diagnosed HFM. This made so much more sense as the HFM spots are not itchy and she wasn't scratching and she didn't have any on her body or back. I then found out that impetigo cream can scar if the sufferer doesn't have impetigo so I immediately stopped using this. The only plus side was that my daughter didn't seem to develop the spots in her mouth and never lost her appetite.

Hunnipot said on 01 November 2010

The first real signs of this was a small looking spot on my hand, then within 24 hours a lot more on both hands, and then 12 hours later on my feet, and continued to spread on my hands and feet. Then I got 5 mouth ulcers. I already had a sore throat, but have had one for a month now, so didn't think much of it. Prior to all of this, I couldn't get warm, so knew I was coming down with something. Unpleasant as it hurts to walk and do simple things like wring a wet flannel. Might have caught it from my kids, but if they had it, it was different to how I have had it. They have had fevers and spots on legs, but not on hands, feet and mouth. Just hope I haven't given it to anyone else as it took me 5 days to figure out it wasn't an allergic reaction unfortunately.

Rich on the Hill said on 10 October 2010

I picked this up from my 20 month year old nephew and it has been really unpleasant - especially the first three days. My first symptoms were a few days of queayness, then I experienced rapid breathing and later developed fever and headache. Next the burning sore throat developed which I now know was the ulcers, these also developed down the length of my tongue and along the top and botom of the jaw. Very painful and difficult to swallow. Salt water gargling and paracetamol provide a ittle relief as does mouthwash and bonjela - but very difficult to sleep. After a day of the sore throat the spots on the hamds and feet developed also some around the mouth. The fever has passed now - so my mind and energy levels are OK but the pain from the ulcers is set to remain for a fwe days yet. Sympathies and good luck to others struck down with this!

Sbag20 said on 11 September 2010

My mates son had the symptoms & at first we didn't know what it was but when she had him checked out they confirmed it was hand, foot & mouth disease. I have never heard about this apart from the animal version but since last night I developed a mouth ulcer thinking it was just an ordinary ulcer I just put sum Vaseline on it & today it has shrunken in size..I then developed a blister on my thumb this morning and while out shopping I noticed more little blisters appear on my other hand, but these blisters are not noticeable thank goodness! But the ones on the tips of my fingers hurt when I go to type on my computer or mobile or even write!
Dr. Confirmed it as head,foot& mouth & told me & my friend who suddenly developed blisters too in her mouth & on her hands this morning surprisingly, to just confine ourselves at home & get some rest & drink plenty fluids. & that people we have come into contact with might have the risk of having the infection themselves which worries me as my whole family might get infected too! Funny how the dr. Spoke so fast like wanted us out quickly..maybe didn't want to get infected too hahaha..
I say drink more fluids/water & get some rest & try not to get into close contact with other people!...
Hoping this goes in 7days don't want to be stuck indoors for that long! :(

rcmang said on 16 August 2010

I also agree with debsyd. We tried everything. My daughter found bonjela and anbesol more painful than useful. The thing that helped her mouth ulcers was called Canker Cover by Quantum Health. We got them in Canada, however, there is likely something similar in the UK. They are patches which adhere to any mouth ulcer and form a clear, gel-like patch. This provides pain relief and protects the sore from food and drink for 8-12 hours. I was skeptical but they really worked.

espurt2 said on 23 December 2009

My 20 month old had a bad nappy rash consisting of some horrible little blisters (that i though looked like chicken pox spots) and 1 blister on her thumb. I dont know if the nappy rash was HFM but if not and she only had 1 blister she had it mild. She was a bit listless for a couple of days but didnt seem to really be affected by it. 4 days after i noticed that I got a really sore throat and blisters on my fingers and palms (none on feet or in mouth though). I can see new ones forming hour by hour (its day 3). These are really painful and i feel a bit rough. I've also had a pretty bad headache of and on for a couple of days but not sure if that is connected.

espurt2 said on 23 December 2009

My 20 month old had a bad nappy rash consisting of some horrible little blisters (that i though looked like chicken pox spots) and 1 blister on her thumb. I dont know if the nappy rash was HFM but if not and she only had 1 blister she had it mild. She was a bit listless for a couple of days but didnt seem to really be affected by it. 4 days after i noticed that I got a really sore throat and blisters on my fingers and palms (none on feet or in mouth though). I can see new ones forming hour by hour (its day 3). These are really painful and i feel a bit rough. I've also had a pretty bad headache of and on for a couple of days but not sure if that is connected.

Funkzilla said on 09 December 2009

I can echo what debsyd said above. Most sites say it's really mild in adults but I've felt really ill with it as well. Our 3 year old had a fever last week and seemed under the weather but we didn't know what it was. He was fine after 2 days. Then a few days later I developed a very severe sore throat and slight fever. Then developed spots on both hands and feet which felt quite painful. 6 days into it now and feel slightly better but still not right. This virus shouldn't be underestimated.

thirdpiglet said on 05 December 2009

We've found that Complan meal replacement drinks have worked well for our 2-year old - lots of vitamins and minerals but in chocolate flavour and cold - so not so painful to drink. Frozen peas worked as well :)

debsyd said on 19 November 2009

Although it says the disease is mild in adults I've had it for nearly two weeks and feel quite ill. Picked it up from my daughter who had it very mildly and got over it in a week.

NB It might be useful when treating a child, to know that the mouth ulcers are extremely painful. Treatment is suggested as for normal mouth ulcers or teething, but when I tried bonjela and anbesol, both of these caused a lot of pain on application and the pain relief didn't last all that long.

debsyd said on 19 November 2009

Although it says the disease is mild in adults I've had it for nearly two weeks and feel quite ill. Picked it up from my daughter who had it very mildly and got over it in a week.

NB It might be useful when treating a child, to know that the mouth ulcers are extremely painful. Treatment is suggested as for normal mouth ulcers or teething, but when I tried bonjela and anbesol, both of these caused a lot of pain on application and the pain relief didn't last all that long.

ashleighthompson01 said on 30 July 2009

Please could someone add more detail of what spymptoms and problems people have when exposed to coxsackie A & B.

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