When are you no longer contagious with hand foot mouth

Q: Are you still contagious with hand foot and mouth if you only have scabs?

A: Youre most contagious with hand, foot and mouth disease during the first few days of being sick —often before blisters appear. Once the blisters dry up, youre less likely to pass on the virus, though it can live in your stool for weeks after the rash clears.

It’s important to be on the lookout for hand, foot and mouth disease, a common childhood illness most often seen in the summer and fall. No, it is not the foot and mouth disease that affects animals — this one gets its name from a distinctive rash that appears on the hands, on the feet and in the mouth.

Table of Contents Show

What does hand, food and mouth disease look like?
Symptom Checker
How to treat hand, foot and mouth disease
Tips to prevent hand, foot and mouth disease
How long is it contagious?
When to call the pediatrician
Dr. Greene’s Answer:
How do I know when my child is no longer contagious with hand foot mouth?
How long do you have to stay home with hand foot and mouth?
Are you still contagious with hand foot and mouth if you only have scabs?

What does hand, food and mouth disease look like?

The rash manifests as tiny red bumps or blisters on the palms of the hands, soles of the feet, fingers and toes. In the mouth, the rash appears as painful sores or ulcers mainly clustered in the back of the throat. But the rash does not necessarily appear in all three areas, and can appear on the arms and legs as well as on the buttocks.

Symptom Checker

In addition to rashes, children often have a fever for the first few days of the illness. Some also have loose stools. Although the skin rash can be a slightly tender nuisance, the mouth sores can be so painful that children refuse to eat or drink.

How to treat hand, foot and mouth disease

While there is no specific cure for hand, foot and mouth disease, you can keep your child comfortable until the illness resolves by following these tips:

Treat mouth pain so that your child drinks well and avoids dehydration. Acetaminophen (e.g., Tylenol®) and ibuprofen (e.g., Motrin®, Advil®) are effective pain medicines.
For toddlers and older kids, offer soft foods such as yogurt, pasta, pudding or smoothies as well as ice pops to provide sustenance and relieve pain.
Offer your child a variety of fluids, keeping in mind if your child is not eating, water alone does not provide energy for the body nor does it provide the salt needed to maintain blood pressure.

The worst of the mouth pain typically occurs during the first three to five days of illness. Antibiotics and other medications do not kill this virus.

Tips to prevent hand, foot and mouth disease

The coxsackie virus that causes hand, foot, and mouth disease is mainly spread through saliva and stool. This is why it often affects toddlers: Kids in this age group often touch other children or share toys and then put their hands in their mouths. The best way to limit the spread of the virus is through frequent handwashing.

Adults can get hand, foot and mouth disease too, so you should also wash your hands frequently, both while caring for your child and after changing diapers.

How long is it contagious?

Like most childhood viruses, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly when kids with hand, foot and mouth disease are no longer contagious. We do know that children can spread hand, foot and mouth disease starting the day before the rash shows up and for several days after the rash appears.

As long as children do not have a fever and otherwise are acting like themselves, most child care centers do not exclude children with the assumption that good handwashing is routinely practiced.

When to call the pediatrician

Most of the time, children do well with this virus. Not all children have pain, and the rash needs no treatment. Keep children home from school until their fever and pain resolve. They do not have to stay home until the rash resolves, which can take one to two weeks.

Call your child’s healthcare provider if:

You need help diagnosing your child’s illness.
Your child is not drinking enough and is showing signs of dehydration, such as decreased urination (no wet diaper in the last six to eight hours), dry lips and mouth, no tears while crying, or dark yellow urine.
Your child’s fever lasts three or more days.
Your child is in a lot of pain.
Your child shows a change in mental state (i.e., they are lethargic, fail to interact with you in their usual manner, or become difficult to awaken).
You have any concerns.

Parents often ask 'Is hand foot and mouth disease contagious?' Unfortunately, it is.

Question

We just figured out the boys both have Hand/Foot/Mouth disease which is no big deal. The issue is that Chantal’s mom just came home from the hospital after having total knee replacement surgery on Monday. Should we ALL stay away from seeing her? If yes, for how long? Or it doesn’t matter because it is not like she was sick?
Shane Valentine

Dr. Greene’s Answer:

Most adults — but not all — have already had Hand Foot and Mouth and are not at risk. There are a few different strains of viruses that cause Hand Foot and Mouth though, so having had the illness once isn’t a guarantee. This leads many parents to ask, ‘Is hand foot and mouth disease contagious?’

Kids may be contagious just by being in the same room while they have a fever and for up to 24 hours after. The saliva can contain the virus for up to 2-3 weeks. The stool can contain the virus for 3-8 weeks or even more. Studies in daycare show that the great majority of spread, though, happens in the first 7 days of symptoms.

I don’t recommend keeping kids out of school beyond 24 hours after fever – because there are likely several kids in class with it anyway without the fever, who don’t even know they have it. Keeping kids out doesn’t appreciably change the spread.

But I do recommend keeping kids with Hand Foot and Mouth away from vulnerable adults, if possible:

Affected kids should not be in the same room as vulnerable adults if they have a fever, plus 24 hours after the fever is gone.
Affected kids should not share the same food or utensils with vulnerable adults while any sores are still present in the mouth or on the body.
Vulnerable adults should not change diapers or aid with toileting assistance in affected kids for two months.
Everyone should implement good hand-washing all the way around, after using the toilet and before eating or drinking or putting hands in the mouth.

If others in the family do get sick, the first symptoms usually occur 3-5 days after getting the virus – and they become contagious about the same time (unlike chickenpox, where you are contagious 24-48 hours before symptoms).

Get Dr. Greene's Wellness RecommendationsSignup now to get Dr. Greene's healing philosophy, insight into medical trends, parenting tips, seasonal highlights, and health news delivered to your inbox every month.

How do I know when my child is no longer contagious with hand foot mouth?

Avoid close contact. Because hand-foot-and-mouth disease is highly contagious, people with the illness should limit their exposure to others while they have symptoms. Keep children with hand-foot-and-mouth disease out of their child care setting or school until fever is gone and mouth sores have healed.

How long do you have to stay home with hand foot and mouth?

Return to School: Can return to child care or school after the fever is gone. Most often, this takes 2 to 3 days. Children with widespread blisters may need to stay home until the blisters dry up. That takes about 7 days.

Are you still contagious with hand foot and mouth if you only have scabs?

A: You're most contagious with hand, foot and mouth disease during the first few days of being sick —often before blisters appear. Once the blisters dry up, you're less likely to pass on the virus, though it can live in your stool for weeks after the rash clears.