Mumps

Mumps Infectious viral illness What is mumps? How do you catch mumps? What is the incubation period? Can animals catch mumps? How can mumps be prevented? Infectious viral illness Airborne/Droplet 17 days No Vaccination (MMR vaccine)

Symptoms Appear after the incubation period Swelling of the parotid salivary glands (either side of your face) is the most common symptom

Symptoms Other symptoms: fever, lack of appetite, dry mouth, joint pains, tiredness, abdominal pain 30% of people infected with mumps do not show any symptoms Symptoms last up to 14 days

Complications There are several complications of mumps, some which can be serious Swollen testicles/ovaries if infected after puberty Viral meningitis Pancreatitis Rare: encephalitis (1 in 1000 of those who develop viral meningitis) and permanent hearing loss (1 in 20,000)

Treatment There is no medication to treat mumps so self-care techniques are used e.g. bed rest, painkillers, plenty of water, a compress for swollen glands and soft food Good hygiene and staying away from others is important to prevent the spread of mumps

Prevention The MMR Vaccine is used to immunise people against mumps It also provides immunity from measles and rubella The MMR vaccine was introduced to the UK in 1988 The MMR vaccine is included in the England and Wales ‘Immunisation Schedule’ and is given first around 12 months and a ‘booster’ is given between 3 and 5 years before starting school

Prevention The MMR Vaccine is 95% effective after the first dose The second dose gives immunity to almost all of those who were not immunised by the first dose The MMR vaccine is safe and effective To produce herd immunity, 90% of a population must be immunised against mumps.

Case Study In 2008/09 there were outbreaks of mumps in universities This was due to students missing out on MMR jabs as children, before the two-dose MMR campaign Mumps was controlled by the two-dose MMR campaign, but this group remained susceptible At university, mumps was able to quickly spread through the susceptible students

Summary Mumps is a contagious viral infection Mumps is spread by air/droplet transmission Mumps is characterised by the swelling of the parotid salivary glands Mumps can be prevented by the MMR vaccine, in addition to measles and rubella, all of which can also have serious complications High vaccination coverage provides a ‘herd immunity’ effect which also protects those who are unable to be vaccinated