5 mistakes when taking care of children with hand, foot and mouth disease

(Baonghean.vn) - Although hand, foot and mouth disease is a mild disease, the symptoms will go away on their own, but it can still progress to a serious condition with dangerous complications if not properly cared for.

1. Confusing mouth ulcers with hand, foot and mouth disease

During the changing seasons, hand, foot and mouth disease often occurs. Because children with this disease often have red sores or blisters in their mouths, which when broken open form ulcers, many parents mistake mouth ulcers for hand, foot and mouth disease. This confusion can make the treatment process more complicated and difficult, and can even cause the disease to progress unpredictably because the child is not properly cared for.

Illustration photo.

To differentiate mouth ulcers from hand, foot and mouth disease. Parents just need to consider whether the blisters appear on the palms, soles, buttocks, or knees of the child. If it is a normal mouth ulcer, the ulcers are usually small, appearing singly or in clusters on the mucous membranes of the cheeks, lips, gums, or under the tongue. The ulcers are grayish-white or slightly yellow with a red halo around them.

In case of indistinguishability, parents should take their children to see a doctor to determine the cause and have appropriate treatment.

2. Do not isolate children

The virus that causes hand, foot and mouth disease can be easily transmitted from person to person through direct contact with saliva, nasal and throat secretions, fluid from blisters or feces of an infected person. However, many parents are not aware of this and still let their children go to school or play with other children when they show signs of illness, leading to the disease spreading further.

To prevent hand, foot and mouth disease from spreading, sick children need to be isolated for at least 10 days from the appearance of symptoms.

3. Improper oral hygiene

When suffering from hand, foot and mouth disease, the blisters that appear in the mouth are the most worrying problem, causing pain and preventing children from eating. Parents are not allowed to clean their teeth, leading to the risk of secondary infection of periodontitis, oral thrush...

If oral hygiene is not done properly, parents can cause blisters to rupture, making ulcers worse and increasing the risk of bacterial infection.

Many parents use towels and gauze soaked in salt water to clean their children's mouths, increasing the risk of touching and breaking the blisters, making the ulcers worse. In addition, wiping the child's mouth with towels and gauze also brings fungus from the outside into the child's mouth.

Symptoms of hand, foot and mouth disease in children. Photo: Internet

4. Over-warming the baby

Children with hand, foot and mouth disease do not need to abstain from anything. The blisters on the skin do not need medication. Cleaning the blisters only needs to be done once a day.

Parents should only give their children fever-reducing medicine when their fever is over 38.5 degrees Celsius. In particular, when children have a fever, parents need to keep their children in a well-ventilated place and dress them in loose clothing. Many people over-warm their children, causing them to sweat, making the condition worse.

5. Overuse of IV fluids

Doctors advise parents not to overuse IV fluids for their children. This measure should only be used when children show signs of severe dehydration such as vomiting, diarrhea, high fever and must be prescribed by a doctor.

For children with mild illness, treated at home, the family should give the child plenty of fruit juice such as orange, grapefruit... to supplement vitamin C, improve resistance. In addition, red and yellow fruits such as carrot juice, tomato, watermelon... are rich in vitamin A - one of the very important vitamins to strengthen the immune system, quickly heal injuries.

When suffering from hand, foot and mouth disease, parents should supplement zinc - an important micronutrient for the body - to help their children recover quickly. Zinc is most abundant in foods such as seafood, including oysters, clams, or daily foods such as egg yolks, chicken... Parents should prepare porridge and soup for children to eat easily./.

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