Children are particularly vulnerable (Images: Getty/Scimex)
Health experts in India are monitoring the outbreak of a new viral infection called tomato flu.
More than 82 children under the age of five were diagnosed with the virus as of July 26, according to the Lancet Respiratory Medicine journal.
Although it is not considered life-threatening, researchers have said it is “highly infectious” and may be a variant of hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD), but this has yet to be confirmed.
It’s called tomato flu because of the red, painful blisters it produces on the body.
Symptoms are similar to dengue fever and chikungunya virus, including rashes, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever, dehydration, joint swelling, and body aches.
Professor Vasso Apostolopoulos, co-author of the Lancet paper, said children are at greater risk because viral infections are spread through close contact, such as touching dirty surfaces or putting things in their mouths.
There are currently no antiviral drugs or vaccines for the treatment or prevention of tomato flu.
The virus is named after the red blisters it produces (Image: Emily Manley)
The Lancet paper recommends that those infected be isolated for five to seven days from the onset of symptoms to stop transmission.
He says the best protection is “maintenance of proper hygiene and disinfection,” along with making sure infected children don’t share toys, clothes and other items with uninfected people.
The virus was first identified in Kerala in early May, before spreading to Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Odisha.
Professor Apostolopoulos said: “At the moment it is still isolated and does not appear to have spread beyond India.”
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