Common, viral and self-limiting. The thing to watch is fluids, because the mouth ulcers make drinking hurt.
Assessed and treated by a GMC-registered GP
Prescriptions, sick notes and referral letters included
A written treatment plan after every appointment
Your NHS records in the room, with your consent
Care led personally by Dr Khan
Attentive, unhurried care that listens properly
Five-star Google reviews from the people we have looked after
Registered with the Care Quality Commission
Hand, foot and mouth disease is a common viral infection of young children, usually caused by a coxsackie virus. It produces mouth ulcers alongside small spots or blisters on the hands, feet and often the nappy area.
It is unpleasant and it looks alarming, but it is self-limiting and settles in seven to ten days without treatment.
The only thing that genuinely needs watching is fluid intake. Mouth ulcers make drinking painful, and a child who refuses fluids for a day or two can become dehydrated — that is the complication which actually brings children to hospital, not the rash.
It has nothing whatever to do with foot and mouth disease in farm animals, despite the name causing regular alarm.
The spots may look brown, grey or simply skin-coloured rather than red, and can be easier to feel than to see. Check the palms, soles and mouth, where the pattern is most typical.
Fingernails and toenails sometimes lift and shed a few weeks after the illness. It looks alarming, it is painless, the nails grow back normally, and it needs no treatment. Almost nobody is warned about it.
The virus can be carried in stool for several weeks after recovery, which is why hygiene matters longer than the illness lasts.
The distribution is the diagnosis: mouth ulcers plus spots on the palms, soles and nappy area. That combination is characteristic and needs no test.
Swabs and blood tests are not required and are reserved for unusual or severe cases.
Any rash that does not fade when pressed under a glass is not this, and needs emergency assessment.
Hand, foot and mouth assesses well by video and photograph — the distribution of spots is characteristic and easy to capture. See our guide to photographing a skin problem.
There is no antiviral treatment for this and antibiotics do nothing. Anyone offering a prescription to cure it is selling you something that does not exist. The honest answer is comfort, fluids and time.
A child who is not drinking, or who is drowsy, needs to be seen in person rather than assessed on a screen.
Seek urgent assessment if your child:
Book a routine consultation if: you want the diagnosis confirmed, the mouth pain is not manageable with what you have tried, you are pregnant and have been exposed, or you need advice for nursery or work.
A painful mouth is the reason children stop drinking, so treat the pain in order to protect the fluids.
Not eating for a few days is fine. Not drinking is not.
There is no formal exclusion period. Children can return once they are well enough to take part, even if a few spots remain.
Keeping a well child at home until every spot has gone is unnecessary, partly because the virus is shed in stool for weeks afterwards regardless.
The risk is generally considered low, but infection around the time of delivery is worth discussing. Mention it rather than worrying quietly — and note that the similar-looking chickenpox is a different and more important matter.
A pharmacist can advise on mouth pain relief free of charge, and for a straightforward case that is a perfectly good first stop. We would rather say that than take a fee for an illness with no specific treatment.
This page follows NICE Clinical Knowledge Summaries on hand, foot and mouth disease, and UKHSA guidance on exclusion from schools and nurseries.
Infection in pregnancy is generally considered low risk, though infection close to delivery warrants discussion. UKHSA advises against routine exclusion of pregnant staff from settings with cases.
Reviewed against NICE CKS and UKHSA guidance current at the date shown above.
Location and itch. Hand, foot and mouth concentrates on the palms, soles, nappy area and mouth, and is sore rather than itchy.
Chickenpox spreads everywhere including the scalp, itches intensely, and shows spots at several stages at once.
No formal exclusion is required. They can go back once well enough to join in, even with spots remaining.
Keeping a well child home until the last spot fades achieves nothing — the virus is shed for weeks either way.
No, and be wary of anyone who says otherwise. It is viral and self-limiting.
Everything useful is about comfort and fluids, which is genuinely the treatment rather than a consolation prize.
Give pain relief about half an hour before offering drinks, and use cold things — ice lollies, ice cream, cold milk.
Small amounts frequently. If they still refuse everything, or have not passed urine for eight hours, get them seen.
Yes, and adults often have it worse. Mouth ulcers in an adult after a child in the house has had it are a common story.
Yes, and it is harmless. Nail shedding a few weeks after the illness is well recognised.
The nails grow back normally and nothing needs doing — though almost no one is warned it may happen.
Yes. Several different viruses cause it, so immunity to one does not prevent the others.
The risk is generally considered low, and routine exclusion of pregnant women is not advised.
Do mention it, particularly near your due date — and make sure it is not chickenpox, which is a different matter entirely.
No, not at all. Completely different viruses, completely different species.
The similar name causes regular and unnecessary alarm.
August 30, 2026
Ongoing
Time to be seen
Appointment length
Your NHS record in the room
Written treatment plan
Told when a test isn’t needed
Cost
Same day, usually
20 minutes
Yes, with your consent
Included
Yes, and told why
£40 for 20 minutes
Varies by practice
Typically 10 minutes
Yes, your full record
Not routinely
Usually
Free
Same day
Often 10 to 15 minutes
Usually not
Sometimes charged
Varies by provider
Often a subscription
Same-day access is usually available, from 6am to 10pm, seven days a week. You choose a time that suits you rather than waiting on hold at 8am.
Yes. Care is led personally by Dr Mohammad Khan, so you are not passed between clinicians. Continuity is the point of a small practice: someone who knows your history and is listening attentively rather than working through a checklist.
Yes, with your consent. We can access your Summary Care Record during the consultation, so your current medications, allergies and significant history are in the room. That means fewer questions you have already answered elsewhere, and safer prescribing.
No. We are not here to replace GPs, only to support them. Your NHS practice remains responsible for your ongoing care, and with your consent we write to them after the consultation. We are useful when you need to be seen sooner, or want more time than a standard appointment allows.
Twenty unhurried minutes and a comprehensive assessment. A written treatment plan is included, along with any prescription, sick note or referral letter arising from the consultation, at no extra charge.
£40 for 20 minutes, self-pay. Membership is optional and never required. Priced for fairness, because we are not here to charge extortionate amounts for access to a doctor.
It means the diagnosis can usually be made from your history and photographs, and that treatment can be arranged safely without examining you. Where a condition is not marked treatable online, it is because examination is the diagnosis — listening to a chest, feeling an abdomen, examining an ear or a joint — or because a procedure or device is needed.
Yes, where there is a genuine bacterial infection — cellulitis, impetigo, bacterial urine infections, confirmed strep throat. We will also frequently tell you that you do not need one. Most sore throats, coughs, colds and earaches are viral, and an antibiotic gives you the side effects with none of the benefit.
If your problem turns out to be genuinely outside what we can do remotely, the doctor will tell you straight away, point you to the right service, and refund your fee in full. We would rather do that than fill twenty minutes to justify the charge.
Call 999 or go to A&E — do not book an online appointment and do not wait for a reply to an email. For urgent problems that are not emergencies, NHS 111 is available 24 hours a day, online or by phone, and can direct you to the right service.
Patient reviews
