It is a viral fever which is usually seen in children of less than 5yrs of age. It is not life threatening and is self-limiting. Till mid of august, 82 cases has been reported so far mainly in Kerala, Tamilnadu and Odisha. As we all passed through dreadful experience of coronavirus, this viral disease should be managed vigilantly and outbreak should be stopped at earliest. This tomato fever is said to be highly contagious, which spreads among school going kids. It was first identified in Kollam district of Kerala on May 6 which further triggers an alert in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. It has been reported that no other region in India has been affected other than Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Odisha. However, precautionary measures are being taken pan India by various health authorities.
Tomato Fever Symptoms: –
The primary symptoms of tomato flu are similar to those of chikungunya, which include fever, skin rashes and intense pain in the joints. Additional symptoms include fatigue, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration, body ache, running nose and conjunctivitis.
The symptoms of tomato flu also look like those of Hand, foot and Mouth disease which includes fever and rash over body. Rash is seen in form of red spots over palms, soles and other body parts.
Why it is named as “tomato”?
It is named as ‘tomato’, because in this disease the fluid filled vesicles are seen over palms and soles, which turns red and big just like tomato. It is caused by Coxsackie virus A16 which belong to Enterovirus family. Same agent is responsible for causing Hand foot and mouth disease.
How many days it takes to recover?
It usually takes 7-10 days to recover from illness, sometimes post viral infection weakness remains there which also settle after next 6-10 days.
Is tomato fever and chicken pox are same?
The presentation is sometimes similar in form of fever and skin rash. But the distinguishing points are: In chichken pox, the lesion first appears over trunk and then spreads to acral areas, whereas in tomato fever the lesion first appears over extremities. Moreover, the chickenpox leaves behind marks after settling down of lesions whereas no residual scar marks remains in the tomato fever at child specialist in gurgaon sector 57.
Management of tomato fever:-
This illness is self limiting means it can be managed by supportive treatment only. First of all isolate the patient from other family member especially those who are already having any illness, pregnant ladies, newborn babies and elderly person.
Rest should be taken till illness settles. Plenty of fluid should be consumed as it helps to keep body hydrated. If there is high fever, paracetamol can be taken along with cold water sponging.
For skin rashes, apply calamine lotion twiceaday and oral cetrizine can be taken twice aday.
How to protect your child from tomato fever?
As similar to other types of flu like influenza flu, tomato flu is very contagious and school going kids are at high risk of catching the infection. So it is better to avoid close contact with child already having illness. Young children are also prone to catch this infection through fomites like bedding, nappies, touching uncleaned surfaces etc.
