Health
Officials say hand, foot and mouth disease is rapidly spreading in the state.
Richmond, Virginia (WWBT/Gray News) – The Virginia Department of Health reported a sharp increase in hand, foot and mouth disease case.
Health officials say the virus appears to be spreading through schools and day care facilities, where the average number of cases so far this year has nearly tripled.
“Just to give you a little bit of data, in past years, we've probably been reporting 45 to 60 outbreaks a year. This year in 2025, we've had over 165 reported disease outbreaks since May,” said Virginia Department of Health Epidemiologist Dawn Sardy.
Dr. Mark Franzenbaum, founder and co-owner of KidMed Pediatric Urgent Care, said his staff has noticed a spike in cases around the world. Multiple locations for groups.
“All of our staff here has noticed a significant increase. And we're seeing an increase across the country as well. And we think it's due to a new strain. There's something called the A6 strain, and it seems to be spreading more rapidly,” Franzenbaum said.
“This virus tends to be prevalent in the summer and fall. This virus loves warmth. And we have a warm fall. We love it. That's why the warm weather is what keeps the virus going,” the doctor added.
of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Coxsackievirus A6, one of the HFMD strains, has also been reported to cause more severe symptoms.
Health officials say the virus causes sores around the mouth and throat, and a red rash that develops into blisters on the hands, feet and sometimes genitals. People with this disease may also develop a fever.
While the disease is not dangerous for most people, there is still a risk, especially for teens and their parents, Franzenbaum said.
Health officials say the idea that the disease only affects children is also a myth.
“It's a nuisance. It's unpleasant. Overall, it's miserable,” Franzenbaum said. “Unfortunately, part of the problem is there's no antiviral treatment for it. There's no vaccine either.”
Doctors say the disease is spread through respiratory droplets (sneezing and coughing), body fluids from blisters, and the stool of infected people.
Patients are contagious before symptoms appear, and symptoms can last for more than a week.
“There's misinformation that the only time you're infectious is when you have a fever, and that's true for many other viruses, too. So parents keep their kids home until the fever goes down and then send them back to school. And now they're spreading the infection to everyone,” Franzenbaum added.
Virginia school departments and health departments are reporting cases.
“Epidemic reporting is required by regulatory law to the Virginia Department of Health,” Saadi said. “Typically, we think an outbreak involves three or more cases, which means three kids in the same classroom, probably within a week or two.”
Even without a fever, patients can spread the virus for days or weeks after symptoms appear, health officials say, and urge people to practice proper hand-washing and disinfecting common areas as important precautions.
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