When the warmer months roll around, a family of viruses named “enteroviruses” make a roaring entrance. Entero means intestinal and while these viruses love to infect the intestines of humans, they also cause symptoms within the mouth, stomach and skin.
I recently saw my first case of hand, foot, and mouth disease for the year. These viruses are very contagious (from kid to kid) and once I see one case I know many will follow. Did you say hand, mouth, and hoof disease? No. This illness is unrelated to mouth and hoof disease which occurs only in cloven-hoofed animals.
The following links describe two common illnesses caused by the Coxsackie A members of the enteroviral family:
These illnesses are generally accompanied by a good fever. Please click on the following link for a review of fever facts and treatment recommendations: Fever
Kids, wash you hands and keep them out of your mouth.
Wishing you well,
Dr. Mark