Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease Cases On Campus

Reported By: Shelby McCormick

Illustrated By: Sydney Simmons

In October, George Fox University (GFU) fell victim to the uptick in Oregon's Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease (HFMD) cases. With many students hearing rumors of the disease, complete with horror stories of blister-covered hands, the rumors of HFMD may have spread more than the disease itself. Here are the facts about GFU’s bout with HFMD and why it may not need to be your biggest concern as we enter into December.  

While the disease is commonly associated with infants and children, adults can also contract the disease. However, treatment is usually unnecessary for adults, as in most cases the disease will resolve itself on its own in seven to ten days. 

While symptoms do tend to be mild, the disease is highly contagious, according to the CDC.  Due to the disease’s contagious nature and ability to transfer easily through surfaces, Dale Issak, GFU’s head athletic trainer, sent out an email on Oct. 29 informing athletes of cases of HFMD on campus. 

In his email, Issak encouraged students to “be extra vigilant with your hygiene habits over the next few weeks as we try and limit the spread. If you practice many of the same preventive measures you did during the COVID Pandemic, we will be able to prevent the spread.” 

Issak went on to explain the methods by which the disease is commonly spread, which include, “close personal contact (such as kissing), the air (through coughing and sneezing), contact with feces, including swallowing recreational water contaminated with feces, and contact with contaminated objects and surfaces.”

GFU’s Health and Counseling Center (HCC) recommends following the CDC’s guidelines for prevention and treatment. This includes the typical precautions of cold and flu season: washing your hands frequently, wiping down commonly touched surfaces, and staying home if you have a fever. 

“It’s difficult to know exactly how many cases GFU had, as those statistics are entirely dependent on if students go into Health and Counseling when they have symptoms,” said Stephanie Matthew, assistant professor of nursing and HCC nurse practitioner. 

Matthew also said that while there is a viral test to confirm HFMD, it is rarely run, even by pediatric doctors who see the most cases. The test is usually not necessary as it is “typically diagnosed simply by the presence of a rash on the palms and soles of the feet and lesions around the mouth. Sometimes the rash looks like blisters, but not always. There are very few rashes that occur in that distribution,” said Matthew.

All that said, the threat of HFMD may have passed. “To my knowledge, there have not been any cases of suspected HFMD on campus in the month of November, so I am not currently worried about it spreading here,” said Matthew.

But while HFMD may not be of current concern, many other viruses are still spreading. “I am far more worried about RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) and other upper respiratory viruses at the moment than HFMD,” said Matthew. 

According to the CDC, RSV typically presents as mild cold symptoms and resolves in one to two weeks, although can be much more serious for infants, young children, and older adults. With the number of respiratory diseases going around, “masking up in general is not a bad idea,” said Matthew.