Nia, age 13, Blisters on hands
‘Nia and her sister were both given baby calves at the beginning of June.’
AA: ‘What did you call your calf, Nia?’
Nia: ‘Violet.’
Nia’s mum: ‘Two or three days after being given them, the two calves became unwell.’
Nia: ‘They were off their food and went floppy. They wouldn’t stand up. We had to feed them with a bottle, but they weren’t interested’
Nia’s mum: ‘Within a couple of days Nia developed itchy raised bumps on the backs of her fingers and hands. We went to see the GP, who diagnosed impetigo (a bacterial infection of the skin). We then took photos and shared them with close farming friends via social media. Within a few hours, a friend of a friend had shown the photos and told the story to a vet in York. The vet in York thought it was cowpox, which I then relayed back to the GP.’
AA: ‘How did you feel, Nia?’
Nia’s mum: ‘She was a bit off-colour for a few days, but not to bad. The blisters were driving her mad, very itchy, but they only lasted for a few days, then burst and went crusty.’
AA: ‘How is Violet now?’
Nia: ‘She’s better.’
I examined Nia’s hands. Whatever it was, it was getting better. Nia’s mum showed me a sequence of photos on her mobile phone. The photos were typical for cowpox, quite inflamed and sore-looking blisters on the fingers and hands. Nasty and troublesome for a few days, but basically a fairly mild, self-limiting viral infection in humans, contracted from cattle. This was the first case of cowpox I had ever seen. I gave advice and prescribed creams to help to restore the integrity of her skin.
AA: ‘One last thing. Would it be possible to send me those photos of Nia’s hands, so we can present her case at our local dermatology clinical meeting for teaching purposes?’
Nia’s mum: ‘Of course.’
AA: ‘And a photo of Violet too?’
Nia’s mum: ‘No problem.’
Alex Anstey 