Onychomadesis in a 9-month-old boy with hand-foot-mouth disease

BACKGROUND: Nail abnormalities in childhood are generally uncommon. Recently, onychomadesis is described as a rare, late complication of hand-foot-mouth disease, which is a viral illness commonly seen in the pediatric age group. It is therefore important to elucidate the presentation of this entity, especially in the context of the hand-foot-mouth disease.

CASE PRESENTATION: We report a case of onychomadesis in a 9-month old Lebanese boy who presented to the emergency department with rapidly progressing nail changes involving all four extremities. These changes appeared few days after the healing of cutaneous lesions of hand-foot-mouth disease.

CONCLUSIONS: This case highlights the importance of recognizing the association between onychomadesis and hand-foot-mouth disease in order to avoid unnecessary treatment and to reassure the patient's parents.