Question
What are the symptoms of hand, foot, and mouth disease?
Answer
Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease is an infectious disease caused by enteroviruses that commonly affects infants and young children. It is not a notifiable disease by law. The disease has a high rate of asymptomatic infection, and the symptoms of apparent patients are generally mild. Patients, asymptomatic carriers, and carriers with no symptoms are the main sources of transmission. The disease is mainly spread through close contact between people and contaminated food by fecal industrial pollution. The virus in the patient’s throat secretions and saliva can be spread through airborne droplets. The patient’s feces remain infectious for several weeks. The clinical manifestation of Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease is an enterovirus disease with an incubation period of generally 3-7 days. Most patients have a sudden onset without any obvious prodromal symptoms. It primarily affects the hands, feet, mouth, and buttocks. There are four non-specific symptoms in clinical diagnosis: painless, itchy, non-scabbing, and non-scabbing. When it begins, there may be mild upper respiratory symptoms.