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Original poster

To ask how to know between chickenpox and hand foot and mouth

25 replies

Ilovechocolatetoomuch · 17/02/2019 07:49

I asked on child health with no replies.
I have a 10 month old.
He came out in red rash type spots on his legs and arms two days ago. He had a very high temp and off his food.
The red spots spread allover his body but not really his tummy,back or face.
Yesterday he got two big spots on his chin and his hands have started to form fluid filled blisters.
I first thought chicken pox but the blisters are just on his hands.
Does anyone have any experience of how to tell the difference?

OP posts:
FeelingRuff · 17/02/2019 07:51

Well I think with chicken pox, it's usually obvious it's chicken pox! If it's not obvious, it very possibly isn't! So...trip to the doctor?

EggbertHeartsTina · 17/02/2019 07:53

HFM usually on hands feet mouth, CP usually starts on the ‘trunk’ - belly and back. With my DS HFM he started with viral rash over his body but the blisters were on his hands feet mouth.
However to this day three years later I wonder if there was CP present too as he’s not caught it yet despite being exposed numerous times.

PS careful of facial blisters turning into impetigo - ours did. Just keep an eye out and you’ll need antibiotics if so.

EleanorLavish · 17/02/2019 07:55

Have you done a glass test OP?
You can get a spotty rash following a virus, one of my DC is prone to it. And it looks very like you describe.
How is he otherwise at the minute?

TildaTurnip · 17/02/2019 07:55

HFM spots are flat and painful and usually on hand, feet, joints, nappy area and mouth.
CP spots are itchy and usually start on torso or face.

Limezested · 17/02/2019 07:57

Scarlett fever? I would take him to a pharmacy they can sometimes differentiate and make recommendations

Original poster
Ilovechocolatetoomuch · 17/02/2019 08:05

Pics if that helps

To ask how to know between chickenpox and hand foot and mouth
OP posts:
Londonexhile · 17/02/2019 08:11

This was my sons HFM. Started slow and then came up to this in about 36 hours.

To ask how to know between chickenpox and hand foot and mouth
To ask how to know between chickenpox and hand foot and mouth
Angeldust747 · 17/02/2019 08:12

That looks like hand foot and mouth from the picture, but I could be wrong. If LO needs medicine I would stay away from ibuprofen/ nurofen until you are sure as it shouldn't be given with chickenpox as it can cause the spots to get infected x

EleanorLavish · 17/02/2019 08:15

Oooo, look at his little squishy hands, so cute! Totally off point I know.
Londonexhile that look awful, your poor DS.
I agree that a good pharmacist can be very helpful and you can then avoid waiting areas. Is there a good one near you?

LotsToThinkOf · 17/02/2019 08:17

With chicken pox my DS got one on his neck first which left us wondering what it was for a day, but after that the spots appeared pretty quickly and all over.

With HFM he appeared to not want to put anything in his mouth, it was more of a mystery for longer I think.

I’d imagine it’s HFM or a virus of some sort, chicken pox ends up being obvious in the end. I hope he’s feeling better soon.

Amanduh · 17/02/2019 08:17

Looks like HFM to me.

Gunpowder · 17/02/2019 08:21

I think HFM too. With chicken pox you typically have red spots, blisters and burst blisters all at once.

Agree with the cute squashy baby hands Smile

newmumwithquestions · 17/02/2019 08:26

A nurse at a my doctors surgery told me to check behind the ears - it’s a very common place for chickenpox to start (even if they’re nowhere else on the face).

From your photos that looks like hfm to me, not chickenpox.

FiveRedBricks · 17/02/2019 08:46

Chicken Pox starts behind the ears. If it started on his legs and in the nappy area and has spots around his mouth and some slowly showing in his heels/hands but not many on the trunk then it is HFM.

FiveRedBricks · 17/02/2019 08:48

Rtft and from the pic it's likely HFM OP. Will keep coming up gradually for a few days then all fade slowly.

Jaxtellerswife · 17/02/2019 08:54

But if it is HFM be warned, mine had it at Christmas and then a month later my son shed most of the skin from his feet and my daughters fingernails have just finished falling off. It's not a guarantee it will happen but it can apparently. I had no idea that could happen so it was quite a shock!
It's not painful though and everything is back to normal.

arseabouttit · 17/02/2019 09:07

When mine hand HFM the spots were on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet, flat, no blisters. Blisters look CP like to me but I agree the tiny rash spots elsewhere do not look like CP. Does he have any blisters on the scalp?

UtterlyUnimaginativeUsername · 17/02/2019 09:14

My GP said that if either of them presents with a non-standard pattern of spots, it's impossible to tell the difference just by looking. However, treatment is the same for each so it doesn't really make any difference which it is.

Yorkshirepudding1987 · 17/02/2019 09:18

@jaxtellerswife

Same happened with my son. My partner also caught it from our son at Christmas and his nails are still falling off!

Yorkshirepudding1987 · 17/02/2019 09:20

And it does look like HFM to me too. My DS started with a rash down his back, 40 temp and projectile vomiting. This prompted a 111 call and then an A&E visit.
The paediatric nurse said although HFM is predominantly on those areas they can get covered in the rash.
Our son had it on his bum and legs as well as his hands, feet and face.

dashitauntagatha · 17/02/2019 09:31

Chicken Pox starts behind the ears.

And this is why you shouldn't come to MN for medical advice. Statements presented as fact that are complete nonsense - sorry to PP but it's just not true.

Hard to tell from the pic - HFM blisters can often take a more oval shape with a greyish colour but as others have said each infection can behave atypically, esp in little ones and it can be hard to tell them apart even in person sometimes, let alone from a picture.

I would ring the GP in the morning and ask for an end of clinic appointment to get a quick diagnosis (most GP's should do this). As Pp have said the treatment is the same (conservative) but it is useful to know for childcare/isolation purposes and so you can tell your child if they've had CP or not when an adult - sometimes it can very very useful to know.

And yes to the squishy hands - totally scrumptious

Jjbay · 17/02/2019 09:35

Looks like HFM to me dc had it about 6 months ago. I wasn’t sure if it was that or chicken pox and a telephone doctor told me to put her in a warm bath and it would bring the chicken pox out all over her body if it was them. He also warned she might get tonsillitis and her nails might fall off with HFM. Both happened 😢

Areyoufree · 17/02/2019 09:44

So hard to know! My son had a random virus, and was covered in spots - some of them fluid filled. We concluded it was chicken pox, but his sister never caught it. The next year, they both came down with chicken pox. I still have no idea what the random virus the year before was - so many viruses cause weird rashes. When my kids got HFM, they both got horrendous rashes on their bums first - in both cases, I thought it was severe nappy rash. Neither of them had the blisters on their hands, but they did in their mouths. Everyone seems to react to these viruses differently.

Original poster
Ilovechocolatetoomuch · 17/02/2019 09:51

Thank you.
I think I will ring gp first thing in a.m. unless he gets worse.
I was so hoping it would be chicken pox as my 6 year old still hasn't had it!

OP posts:
MitziK · 17/02/2019 09:58

Chickenpox = pointy blisters that turn into volcanoes and HFM = flat blisters that turn into puddles in my experience.

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