HHS HealthBeat (June 5, 2012)

Hands, feet and mouths

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Kids can’t get hoof and mouth disease – that’s for livestock – but they can get something that sounds very similar. It’s hand, foot and mouth disease, and it’s more common among kids ages 5 and younger. At the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Eileen Schneider says this viral condition typically occurs in the spring and summer. She says it usually causes mild symptoms, if any:

“They’ll have a fever, they’ll have a rash on the palms of their hands and the soles of their feet, as well as perhaps the rest of the body, and they may have blister-like lesions on the skin as well as in their mouth.” 

There is no specific treatment for the virus, but the symptoms can be relieved.

An article on the virus is in CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Learn more at healthfinder.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I’m Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: June 5, 2012