CAUGHT RED-HANDED
Mets star pitcher Noah Syndergaard has been placed on the disabled list with hand, foot and mouth disease.
The virus, which usually affects children under the age of 5, has infected the 25-year-old athlete, who reportedly caught it during a stint at a kids’ baseball camp in New Jersey during the All-Star break last week.
“Adults can pass it to adults. It’s just much more common in kids,” says Dr. Gail Shust, who specializes in pediatric infectious diseases at NYU Langone Health.
The viral infection causes small, painful lesions in the back of the throat, a fever, and bumps or flat spots on the hands and feet. Because of the intense pain of the oral sores, many sufferers, particularly children, are unable to drink or eat, and may be hospitalized with dehydration.
Like the flu, there is no cure — just rest, drinking plenty of fluids and taking over-the-counter pain meds such as Advil to manage symptoms. “For the vast majority of people, it runs its course in a week or so,” Shust says.
“There are occasions where it can cause a more serious infection and affect the central nervous system,” she adds. “But that’s the exception and not the rule.”
The disease can spread through close contact with an infected person, such as a hug, or being exposed to infected feces as a result of poor hand washing, or respiratory secretions, such as sneezing or coughing.
When it comes to prevention, Shust stresses hand hygiene: Wash frequently, and sneeze into a tissue or elbow.
“That’s the number-one thing we can do,” she says. “We don’t have a vaccine for it.”