3 year old with Hand Foot and Mouth disease...also i'm pregnant...

[hollytheteacher]

My 3 year has (i'm pretty sure based on his symptoms and a quick google search) H, F and M disease. He only has the tongue blisters right now, but also a fever. He said his neck and cheeks hurt also.

He just fell asleep and i'm waiting for my DH to get home to take him into the dr.

Also, i'm pregnant....should I be concerned about catching it?

Anything I can do to help ds? He has no appetite and has been VERY lathargic today.

[KempsMama]

Honestly, I wouldn't bother with taking him to the doc-there isn't anything they can do for HFM. It's viral, so anti-biotics won't do anything for it. You can treat the symptoms with your preferred pain reliever, and keep him well hydrated.

It's rare for adults to catch it, my 2.5 year old had it while I was pregnant, I let my OBGYN know, but he had no concerns. I didn't catch it then. I did get it just last month, I was pretty uncomfortable but no major issues, and the baby didn't get it.

As far as his appetite, it's likely that it just hurts to eat, as the sores are pretty painful in the mouth. My son barely ate while he was sick, but bounced back quickly.

[kittywitty]

You are probably immune already. There is one form of HFM that can increase neonatal death but it's very, very rare. You can have your ds tested to make sure that's not it, but it's so rare that it's probably not worth bothering with. I had this about a month ago from a different strain than I've had in the past. I researched the crap out of it, but I'm not worried at this point. The strain of coxsackie that can cause issues causes lung & heart problems and without any of these issues, you're probably in the clear!

[ASusan]

You can take L-lysine (and have your DS take it for direct treatment of the virus). I am pretty sure that l-lysine is safe for pregnancy, but you might want to double-check. L-lysine is great for oral things, in general, and also great for viral infections.

Google l-lysine and herpes for dosages, as they are higher than what a typical supplement bottle will say.

[hollytheteacher]

Originally Posted by kittywitty

You are probably immune already. There is one form of HFM that can increase neonatal death but it's very, very rare. You can have your ds tested to make sure that's not it, but it's so rare that it's probably not worth bothering with. I had this about a month ago from a different strain than I've had in the past. I researched the crap out of it, but I'm not worried at this point. The strain of coxsackie that can cause issues causes lung & heart problems and without any of these issues, you're probably in the clear!

Eek. That scares me a little because my ds was born with a heart defect so i really hope he doesn't have the strain that can hurt his heart

[kittywitty]

You would probably know if it was-it's a much more severe form. You can get a swab done, I believe, or maybe blood test? to double check, but remember, it's very rare. Since he has a heart defect, it might be worth asking the doc to test if he thinks it's Coxsackie (HFM).

The "B" virus is what I'm talking about.

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Hand-fo...roduction.aspx