Hand foot and mouth-November 2025

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HAND-FOOT-MOUTH

Date: 6/11/2025

Dear Parent or Carer,

This letter is to inform you that a child in our school has been diagnosed with hand-foot-mouth disease.

Hand-foot-mouth disease is a common mild childhood illness, typically affecting children under the age of ten, which is caused by a moderately contagious virus.  Adults may also become infected with the virus.

Initial symptoms of hand-foot-mouth disease include fever, poor appetite, general discomfort and often a sore throat.  Approximately two days after onset of initial symptoms, painful sores develop in the mouth.  They begin as small, red spots that often become ulcers.  A non-itchy rash with flat or raised red spots with a blister-like appearance develops one to two days after initial symptoms begin.  The rash typically appears on the hands and feet.  Most people recover without complications within seven to ten days.  If your child becomes ill with hand-foot-mouth disease, keep him or her at home for the first few days of the infection to reduce the spread of the virus.

Hand-foot-mouth disease is moderately contagious and is spread from person-to-person by direct contact with nose and throat discharges, saliva, fluid from blisters, or stool of the infected person.  Surfaces contaminated with these substances may also become a source of infection.  Proper hand washing and thorough cleaning of surfaces can reduce the spread of hand-foot-mouth disease.

If your child develops any of the above symptoms, please call your GP for advice.

Many thanks