Real Housewives of Orange County alum Meghan King realized her children contracted hand, foot, and mouth disease after daughter Aspen complained about “dots” on her hands
Meghan King’s three kids are all recovering after contracting the highly contagious hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD), pushing back their family vacation to Disneyland in the process.
On Wednesday, the Real Housewives of Orange County alum — who shares three children, twin boys Hart and Hayes, 3, and daughter Aspen, 5, with ex-husband Jim Edmonds — revealed on Instagram that her kids were infected with the “gross” virus, which presents as sores in the mouth and rashes on the hands and feet.
She included photos of herself and the three when they were at the zoo, shots taken “moments before I realized they were infected.”
King, 37, went on to elaborate on the ordeal on her blog, saying that she first figured out the kids contracted the disease after Aspen complained about dots on her hands the morning of their trip to the zoo.
At first King dismissed them, assuming they were mosquito bites and that Aspen was just being “a bit of a drama queen” complaining about “a non-issue.” But after the complaints continued, King googled “dot rash” and realized what was going on.
“I cringe a bit with embarrassment and remorse as we exit [the zoo] as far apart from strangers as possible,” King recalled.
A pediatrician confirmed the diagnosis the next day. A family trip they had scheduled to Disneyland three days later had to be canceled as a result.
According to Dr. Travis Stork — an ER physician, former host of The Doctors and a member of PEOPLE’s Health Squad — HFMD symptoms usually present “a few days after initial infection including fever, sore throat, loss of appetite, and a general feeling of being unwell also known as malaise.”
“Other symptoms that present after the onset of infection include mouth sores and rashes and blisters on hands and feet that can sometimes spread to the knees, elbows, buttocks, or genital region,” he told PEOPLE in 2018.
Stork said HFMD can be spread through nose and throat secretions such as saliva and blister fluid.
“Young children under 5 years old are most at risk of becoming infected because they often put their hands in their mouth and have weakened immune systems,” he clarified. “HFMD is highly contagious and is spread person-to-person. Those infected are most contagious within the first week of their illness but can still spread the virus for the next three weeks.”
As for treatment, Stork explained that while the disease cannot be treated, symptoms can be reduced within a week through over-the-counter medications such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen, which can help with fever and other pains. “It is also advised to drink plenty of fluids to prevent dehydration that can occur when a sore throat makes it difficult to swallow.”
Symptoms of the disease usually die down within a week, Stork said. Infected children should be kept away from school or child care centers until he or she has been without a fever for at least 24 hours.
Adults can also get HFMD, Stork warned, “but often exhibit no symptoms of the infection and can unknowingly spread the disease to other individuals.”
As for King’s kids, she said on her blog that they’re on the mend.
“Thank goodness my kids weren’t severely affected,” she wrote. “They didn’t have fevers, and other than being a little whiny they felt fine, ate fine, and acted normal. Hart and Aspen had sores in their mouths, Aspen had red ‘dots’ all over her hands, Hart’s left foot and between his toes completely blistered but his right foot was fine, and Hayes had about 5 ‘dots’ in total.”
Perhaps the biggest downside? “Quarantine PTSD is coming back in full force,” King said.
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