TTMA: HFM

musicalsilver

I know there's been talk of this in the past, but I didn't pay it any mind since LO didn't have it.

We have an unofficial HFM diagnosis (I spoke with a nurse from our pediatrician on the phone this morning - apparently they've been getting a lot of calls regarding HFM over the last couple weeks).  Lots of bumps in LO's diaper area that appeared overnight coupled with bumps around LO's mouth.

On to my actual questions that I forgot to ask the nurse about - 

Do I need to disinfect my whole house?  Should I wait until the sores go away to replace LO's toothbrush?  Should I do anything special to the rash in his diaper area?  Just treat it like a regular diaper rash?  And how long should I expect this rash to go on?

Thanks ladies!

ColieAnn31

I wish I had some advice but we haven't had to deal with this sickness yet. I'm just here to say I'm sorry you all are having to go through this and hopefully it passes soon!

needanustart

I never got around to disinfecting my house when G, DH and I got it around 3 years ago. I honestly was so sick and we were closing on our new house that I did ZERO differently and just let it run it's course. It hadn't even occurred to me until you wrote that to replace toothbrushes so I definitely didn't do that. You can also put some toothbrushes through the dishwasher if there is a sanitize cycle. My mom did that a lot growing up.

As for the sores, my family barely got them, but a friend's family got them and they all just had awful peeling skin for weeks. I'm not sure she did anything differently except use more coconut oil for moisturizing. Sorry and feel better!

itsStackie

We did not disinfect much. From what I read a lot is spread through bowel movement, so when changing diapers make sure all people wash their hands and disinfect that area (daycare should already being doing this, but it said it can still be spread a month after through bowel movements, so I would remind them and let them know).  If the sores to do not open up it's not as bad and adults usually don't get symptoms as bad as children.  

We treated LO's like a regular diaper rash as we did not know she had it until DH got it. She had mild symptoms so the rash area healed within a few days.  If skin does start peeling, we used aquaphor to help it and soothe. 

riansmommie

We had a bad case here but I didn't really disinfect anything. Just wiped a few things down that I already normally do. No one else got it. For the rash we were told to just keep it dry and clean. He had on every surface minus his back. Even had them in his mouth/throat. It took about 3 weeks for the rash to finally go away but he wasn't contagious anymore after about the third day. Hopefully your LO doesn't get it too bad, it sucks!

musicalsilver

LOs spots are going down his thighs, and there are some on his hands now as well.  I'm just hoping they stay out of his mouth so he continues to eat!

Not really sure what this means for our Thanksgiving travel plans.  I mean, luckily it's "just" my parents and brother, so no other littles, but should we cancel?  WWJ13 do?

riansmommie

@musicalsilver‌ as long as LO is fever free for 36 hours beforehand I would still go. If LO is still running the fever though I wouldn't risk it.

musicalsilver

LO seems to have escaped the fever portion of HFM (fingers crossed it stays that way!), so I guess we're good to go?

riansmommie

@musicalsilver‌ y'all got lucky! If def say you are good to go

itsStackie

trutru127 said: itsStackie said: We did not disinfect much. From what I read a lot is spread through bowel movement, so when changing diapers make sure all people wash their hands and disinfect that area (daycare should already being doing this, but it said it can still be spread a month after through bowel movements, so I would remind them and let them know).  If the sores to do not open up it's not as bad and adults usually don't get symptoms as bad as children.  We treated LO's like a regular diaper rash as we did not know she had it until DH got it. She had mild symptoms so the rash area healed within a few days.  If skin does start peeling, we used aquaphor to help it and soothe.  ___________I'm going to be the bearer of bad news with this one and say, DH got it on our honeymoon, and it was one of the WORST cases I have ever seen.  Any symptom you could read about being a possibility, he got all the way down to swelling in places a new wife doesn't want to see.  Thankfully I didn't get it from him and we had obviously been pretty intimate before it hit him so I don't think it is as easy for adults to catch but can still be pretty bad if they do. __________

@trutru127 That stinks.  My husband actually got it the worst out of the three of us 2 months ago.  He is still peeling on his hands and feet and couldn't eat much of anything for days.  But that's what he was told at the Doctor when he went that adults don't usually have this bad of symptoms and such, the paperwork he received even said how to care for your child with HFM. He was embarrassed to tell people that we all got it. Poor guy, and your poor husband too.

eta: very big quote fail!!