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Preparing for your appointment
If you take your child to a doctor, make the most of your time by writing down information the doctor will need before you go, including:
- Any signs and symptoms your child is experiencing
- How long your child has been having signs and symptoms
- Whether your child has been in child care or other environments where the disease might be spread
- Any questions you have
Some questions you might want to ask your doctor include:
- What's the likely cause of the symptoms?
- Are there other possible causes?
- Will my child need to undergo any tests?
- What's the best treatment approach?
- Is there a need to take medicine?
- What can I do at home to make my child more comfortable?
What to expect from your doctor
Some questions the doctor may ask include:
- When did symptoms first begin?
- How severe are the symptoms?
- Has your child recently been exposed to anyone who was sick?
- Have you heard of any illnesses at your child's school or day care?
- Does anything seem to improve the symptoms?
- Does anything appear to worsen the symptoms?
What you can do in the meantime
To help lessen discomfort, doctors often recommend:
- Getting rest
- Drinking fluids — milk-based fluids may be easier to tolerate than acidic liquids, such as juice or soda
- Taking over-the-counter pain relievers other than aspirin, such as acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) or ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, others), if needed, but they're not necessary for low-grade fevers
- Using mouthwash or oral spray to numb pain
- Hand, foot, & mouth disease (HFMD): Fast facts. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/revb/enterovirus/hfhf.htm. Accessed July 12, 2011.
- Ng JJ, et al. Hand-foot-mouth disease. In: Ferri FF. Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2012. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2011. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/linkTo?type=bookHome&isbn=978-0-323-05611-3&eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-323-05611-3..C2009-0-38601-8--TOP&uniq=266352183-2. Accessed July 12, 2011.
- Modlin JF. Clinical manifestations and diagnosis of enterovirus infections. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed July 12, 2011.
- Non-polio enterovirus infections. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/revb/enterovirus/non-polio_entero.htm. Accessed July 13, 2011.
- Belazarian L, et al. Exanthematous viral diseases. In: Wolff K, et al. Fitzpatrick's Dermatology in General Medicine. 7th ed. New York, N.Y.: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2008. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=2997642. Accessed July 13, 2011.
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