Symptom Resolution in Acyclovir Treated Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease

Paul Gursky,William Butler,Jennifer Nguyen,Melodie Mope Md,Bryan Pacheco

doi:10.12691/ajmcr-8-12-6

Abstract

Background: Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease (HFMD) is a highly contagious virus primarily affecting young children, but may also impact older children and adults. Initial symptoms typically manifest as fever, malaise, and pharyngitis, followed by eruption of erythematous, papular lesions on the palms and soles. HFMD is typically treated with supportive care, as there is no current gold standard therapy for HFMD. However, based on previous case studies, acyclovir has demonstrated its potential as a viable treatment for HFMD. Case Presentation: A 37-year-old female patient presented to the clinic with a two-day history of fever, malaise, pharyngitis, and papulovesicular skin lesions on her hands and feet. A clinical diagnosis of HFMD was made, and the patient was promptly started on oral acyclovir 800 mg, three times daily for seven days. Within two days of acyclovir treatment, the patientâs fever subsided, and the skin lesions on the hands and feet were fully resolved. Conclusion: Our case report showcases the benefits of acyclovir therapy in treating HFMD. Acyclovir treatment provided our patient symptomatic relief, resulting in defervescence and complete resolution of skin lesions. Symptom duration and severity were lessened significantly within the first couple days of therapy. Acyclovir therapy has shown promising results for potential HFMD treatment, and we encourage additional studies to further evaluate its efficacy.

Highlights

Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease (HFMD) is a highly contagious virus of the picornovirdae family [1]
Multiple cases have been reported in which acyclovir treatment resulted in symptomatic relief, lesion resolution, and defervescence within days of initial dosing. [7,8,9]
A 37-year-old female patient arrived at clinic with a two-day history of low-grade fever, malaise, and American Journal of Medical Case Reports pharyngitis, accompanied by an aphthous ulcer on the tongue and papulovesicular skin lesions on hands and feet

Summary

Introduction

Foot, and Mouth Disease (HFMD) is a highly contagious virus of the picornovirdae family [1]. The prodromal phase is followed by erythematous, papular or vesicular skin lesions, primarily located on the palms and soles, and painful stomatitis of the mouth. The majority of cases of HFMD occur in children, usually younger than seven years old. Complications of the virus may include dehydration, rhombencephalitis, acute flaccid paralysis, aseptic meningitis, myocarditis, and pancreatitis [6]. The majority of complications is caused by enterovirus 71, with clinical features correlating with viral spread through the reticuloendothelial system and CNS. Severe neurologic complications have been observed with CV-A6 and CV-A10, including encephalitis and aseptic meningitis [7]. Multiple cases have been reported in which acyclovir treatment resulted in symptomatic relief, lesion resolution, and defervescence within days of initial dosing. Multiple cases have been reported in which acyclovir treatment resulted in symptomatic relief, lesion resolution, and defervescence within days of initial dosing. [7,8,9]

Case Presentation

Discussion