Mumps is a contagious illness caused by a virus that can result in fever and swelling of the neck. During the prevaccine era, nearly everyone in the United States experienced it, and 90 percent of cases occurred among children under 15 years of age. Today, there are fewer than a thousand cases each year in the United States.
The
mumps cause is an infection with the
mumps virus. This virus is an RNA (ribonucleic acid) virus from the family
Paramyxovirus of the genus
Rubulavirus. The virus only infects humans, and it is found worldwide.
How Is the Virus Transmitted?
The mumps virus resides in the mucus in the nose and throat of the infected person, along with the saliva. When that person sneezes or coughs, droplets spray into the air. The infected mucus can land in other people's noses or throats when they breathe or put their fingers in their mouth, nose, or eyes after handling an infected surface.
When a person becomes infected with the mumps virus, it begins to multiply within the nose, throat, and lymph glands in the neck. The virus can also enter the blood and spread to other parts of the body. After 16 to 18 days, on average, symptoms can appear. This period between transmission and the start of symptoms is the "
incubation period for mumps." In some cases, the incubation period can be as early as 12 days or as late as 25 days.
A person with mumps is contagious anytime from about three days prior to the onset of the swelling of the salivary glands (called parotitis) to nine days after the onset. A person can spread the disease if he or she becomes infected with the virus, even if symptoms never develop.
- Fever
- Headache
- Muscle aches
- Tiredness
- Loss of appetite
- Sore throat
- Chills
- Swelling of salivary glands (the parotid salivary glands, which are located within your cheek, near your jawline, and below your ears, are most frequently affected).
In order to make a definitive diagnosis, your healthcare provider will ask a number of questions about your medical history and will perform a physical exam, looking for signs or symptoms.
Diagnosing mumps can often be done just based on your symptoms and findings on the physical exam. If your healthcare provider is unsure, he or she may order tests that look for antibodies against the
mumps virus or for the virus itself.
During a
mumps outbreak, making a diagnosis is straightforward. When a mumps case is more isolated, the doctor will consider several other medical conditions that can have similar signs or symptoms, including:
There is currently no
treatment for mumps that can kill the virus. Because the disease is caused by a virus, antibiotics or other medications are not effective. Therefore, treatment focuses on providing relief from symptoms as the body fights the virus. This is called supportive care.
Most people recover from mumps without any long-term problems. In rare cases, however, problems can result, including deafness.
There are also a number of possible complications that can occur as a result of mumps. Some of these complications can occur with symptoms of mumps. In other cases, these complications may develop without symptoms.
- Inflammation of the testes (orchitis)
- Inflammation of the brain and/or tissue covering the brain and spinal cord (encephalitis/meningitis)
- Inflammation of the ovaries and/or breasts (oophoritis and mastitis)
- Spontaneous abortion, particularly in early pregnancy (miscarriage)
- Deafness, usually permanent
- Pancreatitis.
Prior to a vaccine being licensed in 1967, 100,000 to 200,000 mumps cases are estimated to have occurred in the United States each year. By way of contrast, fewer than 300 cases were reported in 2003.
- Wash hands well and often with soap, and teach children to wash their hands, too
- Don't share eating utensils
- Surfaces that are frequently touched (toys, doorknobs, tables, counters, etc.) should also be regularly cleaned with soap and water or with cleaning wipes
- Limit your contact with people who have known symptoms of the disease.
