herpangina

Etiology

• Coxsackie A virus
• Coxsackie B virus
• less commonly echovirus, adenovirus, herpes simplex
• enterovirus 71 (may cause severe illness)

Epidemiology

• most common summer & fall
• infants & children (3-10 years of age)
• less common in adolescents, young adults

Clinical manifestations

• acute febrile illness
• small vesicular or ulcerative lesions on the posterior oropharynx
• pharyngitis
• odynophagia
• older children may complain of headache & backache
• enteroviral infection may present with:
  • rash
  • GI symptoms mimicking appendicitis

Complications

• CNS lesions
• cardiopulmonary failure
• fatalities rare, primarily infants

Management

• no effective antiviral therapy
• treatment is supportive
  • hydration
  • analgesics, antipyretics
• prognosis: typically a mild & self-limited illness

More general terms

• viral infection
• stomatitis (includes oral ulceration)