PUBLISHED FRI, AUG 26 2022 5:12 PM EDT
Brandon Lewis @nerovisum
With more than 100 cases of the emergence of the rare, new viral infection afflicting young children, has prompted health authorities in India to issue a health advisory.
The “Tomato flu” — named due to the painful red blisters it produces . There is 82 children detected ages under five in the state of Kerala, where the first case was detected on May 6th, 2022.
There was an additional 26 cases in a neighborhood named Tamil Nadu state and Odisha in the east, where children as old as 9 years old have been infected.
India’s ministry of health stated that the virus is non life threatening. The administration has issued testing and prevention guidelines to all states this week, urging parents/guardians to be extra vigilant in checking their children for symptoms.
What is tomato flu?
According to doctors the flu affects children below five (5) years of age. The symptoms of this flu, also called Tomato fever, include rashes, skin irritation and dehydration. According to several reports, the flu can also cause tiredness, joint pain, stomach cramps, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, coughing, sneezing, runny nose, high fever, and body ache. In some cases, it may also change the colour of the legs and the hands.
This flu is a self-limiting one and there is no specific drug for this. Which means that the symptoms will resolve overtime on their own if supportive care is given. It seems to hit the system and which gives a relatively feeling of having influenza.
Scientists are still trying to identify the route of the virus and how it entered human civilization. However, they say “it is not related to SARS-CoV-2 <Covid-19>,” despite displaying some similar symptoms.
The virus is more likely caused by two mosquito-borne viral diseases, chikungunya or dengue.
Or, it could be a new variant of viral hand, foot and mouth disease, a common infectious disease that primarily affects children between the ages of 1 and 5 and immunocompromised adults.
Who can catch it and how?
Children are at increased risk of exposure to tomato flu because viral infections are common in this age group and are likely to be spread through close contact.
They are also particularly prone to wearing diapers, touching dirty surfaces and putting them directly in their mouths.
However, older adults may be at risk if the outbreak is not contained and transmission limited. Given the similarities to hand, foot and mouth disease, if outbreaks of tomato flu in children are not controlled and prevented, transmission could have serious consequences through transmission to adults.
Tomato flu is a self-limiting illness, meaning it tends to resolve spontaneously without treatment.
However, health officials have urged people to take precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the outbreak, including isolating suspected cases for five to seven days following the onset of symptoms.
The best solution for prevention is the maintenance of proper hygiene and sanitization of the surrounding necessities and environment as well as preventing the infected child from sharing toys, clothes, food, or other items with other non-infected children.
