Primary prevention
The risk of infection can be lowered by following good hygiene practices. Patients and their parents or caregivers should pay particular attention to hand washing before and after personal care and food-preparation activities. Items and surfaces contaminated with body fluids should be cleaned with diluted bleach solutions. Because the disease is highly contagious, people with the illness should limit their exposure to others while they have active signs and symptoms. The disease is most contagious during the first week of illness, but the virus may spread after the signs and symptoms have disappeared because it persists in fecal material for up to 1 month. CDC: hand, foot, and mouth disease Opens in new window In parts of Asia where the disease is thought to be caused by enterovirus 71 (EV71) and to lead to epidemics, a vaccine is now available.[15][16][17]
Secondary prevention
Good hygiene practices will help prevent the spread of the infection. In outbreaks that occur in institutional settings, this is more important. Items and surfaces that may have been contaminated with body fluids such as saliva, vesicle fluid, or feces should be washed and disinfected with a diluted solution of chlorine-containing bleach.
As a general rule, people with the infection should keep away from public places. However, the CDC has no specific guidelines on whether infected children should attend childcare, school, or other group settings. The spread of the infection may be reduced if children are kept at home during the first few days of illness, when they have vesicles in their mouths and drool, or if they have weeping lesions on their hands. However, this will not prevent the spread of the infection, since the virus may still be excreted for weeks after symptoms have ended. CDC: hand, foot, and mouth disease Opens in new window
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