TOMATO FEVER: A Brief Insight About What You Should Know
Tomato Flu is a viral disease. The name “Tomato Flu” comes from the main symptom of this disease, the tomato-shaped blisters on several body parts.
The blisters start as red-co-loured small blisters and resemble tomatoes when they enlarge.
SYMPTOMS :
Primary symptoms observed in children with Tomato Flu are similar to those of other viral infections, which include:
- fever, skin rashes, soreness in the mouth, and pain in joints
- Rashes on the skin can also lead to skin irritation.
- It also includes fatigue, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever, dehydration, swelling of joints, body aches, and common influenza-like symptoms.
It begins with mild fever, poor appetite, malaise, and often a sore throat.
One or two days after the fever begins, small red spots appear which changes to blister and then to ulcers.
The blisters start as red-co-loured small blisters and resemble tomatoes when they enlarge.
The sores are usually located on the tongue, gums, inside of the cheeks, palms, and soles.
It seems the disease is a clinical variant of the so-called hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) that is common in school-going children.
Infants and young children are also prone to this infection through the use of nappies, touching unclean surfaces as well as putting things directly into the mouth.
HFMD occurs mainly in children under 10 years of age, but it can occur in adults too. There are no disease-specific medications available.
INVESTIGATIONS :
In children with these symptoms, tests are done for diagnosis of dengue, chikungunya, zika virus, varicella-zoster virus, and herpes; once these viral infections are ruled out, a diagnosis of tomato flu is considered.
Samples from the throat or stool may be sent to a laboratory to test for isolating the virus involved in causing the illness, which may take 2–4 weeks to obtain the laboratory results.
PRECAUTIONS :
Isolation should be followed for 5–7 days from the onset of any symptom to prevent the spread of infection to other children or adults.
The best solution for prevention is :
- Maintenance of proper hygiene
- Sanitization of the surrounding necessities and environment
- Preventing the infected child from sharing toys, clothes, food, or other items with other non-infected children.
TREATMENT :
Tomato Flu is a self-limiting infectious disease as the signs and symptoms resolve after a few days.
Treatment is similar to other viral infections i.e. isolation, rest, plenty of fluids, and a hot water sponge for relief of irritation and rashes. Supportive therapy of paracetamol for fever and body ache and other symptomatic treatments are required.
Hand Foot and Mouth Disease (HFMD) is one of the many infections that result in mouth sores. However, health care providers can usually tell the difference between HFMD and other causes of mouth sores by considering the patient`s age, the symptoms reported by the patient or parent, and the appearance of the rash and/or sores. Diagnosis is largely clinical.
Note: If you face any symptoms regardless of these, kindly visit a doctor for proper and timely treatment.
