SINGAPORE: If your child cries without tears, has a dry mouth or sunken eyes, be warned – your child may be suffering from dehydration.

In light of the current outbreak of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD), which can lead to dehydration, being aware of these early symptoms may save your child's life.

Common illnesses like HFMD, diarrhoea or even strenuous exercises can cause a massive loss of body fluids.

For HFMD patients, ulcers in the mouth may lead to poor feeding and therefore, low water intake. So far this year, 21 children with HFMD had been hospitalised because of poor feeding.

Doctors said if dehydration is not treated early, it can cause the body to go into shock and in severe cases, even death.

A visiting Mexican paediatrician, who was in Singapore for a seminar on infant nutrition, has warned that parents should not wait for dehydration symptoms to appear, especially for children who are less than two years old.

Dr Pedro Gutierrez-Castrellon, Research Director, National Paediatric Medicine, Mexico, said: "Because one or two signs in children less than two years old signify that he's already dehydrated, so it is necessary to start a very early treatment and try to get help from healthcare professionals."

Before that happens, early signs to look out for include lethargy, inactivity and high fever, especially when the child has not urinated in 12 hours.

Dr Ong Eng Keow, Consultant Paediatrician, Thomson Medical Centre, said: "The young ones tend to get dehydrated more quickly, compared to the older kids because they are smaller in size, and milk is the main source of nutrition. Older kids do take some solids as well.

"I would say that about 5 to 10 percent of the children who vomit and have diarrhoea do get dehydrated when they get gastroenteritis or gut infection or what we commonly call stomach flu."

Other bugs that can lead to dehydration due to vomiting and diarrhoea include rotavirus, salmonella and e-coli.

Dr Ong, who sees about 50 cases of dehydrated children of various ages every month, recommends giving children small amounts of fluid every half an hour or hourly.

In this hot weather, he added that older children who do strenuous exercises must also have enough fluid intake to stay well-hydrated throughout the day.

Besides water, they can also take other oral rehydrate solutions to replenish water loss in the body quickly, and some of these solutions can be frozen into popsicles to entice children to consume them.


- CNA/so