Which presentation is associated with Hand, Foot, and Mouth disease due to Coxsackievirus?

Which presentation is associated with Hand, Foot, and Mouth disease due to Coxsackievirus?

• A. Fever, sore throat, rash, and vesicles or sores on the hands and feet, with possible GI symptoms.
• B. Severe unilateral hearing loss and otitis media.
• C. Sore throat with unilateral facial droop.
• D. Jaundice and right upper quadrant pain.

Answer: (A)

Hand, Foot, and Mouth disease is caused by a nonpolio enterovirus, most often Coxsackievirus A16. It classically causes fever and sore throat, followed by painful vesicular lesions in the mouth and a distinctive vesicular rash on the palms and soles (often with involvement of the buttocks). The inclusion of fever, sore throat, a rash with vesicles or sores on the hands and feet, and possible mild GI symptoms fits this pattern and is the hallmark presentation for HFMD due to Coxsackievirus. The other scenarios describe conditions unrelated to HFMD—for example, ear-related illness with hearing loss, facial nerve palsy, or hepatitis-like symptoms with jaundice—so they don’t match this disease profile.

Hand, Foot, and Mouth disease is caused by a nonpolio enterovirus, most often Coxsackievirus A16. It classically causes fever and sore throat, followed by painful vesicular lesions in the mouth and a distinctive vesicular rash on the palms and soles (often with involvement of the buttocks). The inclusion of fever, sore throat, a rash with vesicles or sores on the hands and feet, and possible mild GI symptoms fits this pattern and is the hallmark presentation for HFMD due to Coxsackievirus. The other scenarios describe conditions unrelated to HFMD—for example, ear-related illness with hearing loss, facial nerve palsy, or hepatitis-like symptoms with jaundice—so they don’t match this disease profile.