Mumps outbreaks are caused by the contagious nature of the disease and lack of immunization, with unvaccinated populations being more susceptible. Mumps commonly causes swelling of the salivary glands and can be diagnosed through a simple examination or blood test. The mumps vaccine is the best prevention method, and there is no conclusive link between the MMR vaccine and autism.
A mumps outbreak is caused by a combination of two factors: the nature of the disease and lack of immunization. Mumps is very contagious and can spread easily from person to person. If an area has a large population of unvaccinated people, a mumps outbreak is more likely to occur. Outbreaks usually occur in children under the age of 12.
Mumps commonly causes swelling of the salivary glands, but in rare cases it has also been known to affect the central nervous system, pancreas, and testicles. People infected with mumps are advised to drink liquids and apply hot or cold compresses to the swollen glands. The virus is often accompanied by fever, and an infected person becomes ill for up to 10 days. A simple examination of the swollen area is usually all a doctor needs to diagnose mumps, but a blood test may be done to rule out other diseases.
Being a viral disease, mumps is highly contagious. It spreads in moist fluids, just like the flu or a cold, and a person infected with mumps can pass it on to another person by sneezing or coughing on that person. The disease is most contagious during the first week of symptoms, but an infected individual will have no symptoms for about 16 days. Sometimes symptoms do not appear for almost a month. Even before a person starts feeling sick, they are contagious and could spread the disease to others.
The mumps vaccine was introduced in the 1960s. It’s the best way to prevent a mumps outbreak. Although individuals who have had mumps are immune to mumps, the vaccine is a less painful method of immunization. The mumps vaccine must be given twice to be effective. Most people get the vaccine when they are one year old and again between the ages of four and six.
In the early 2000s, there was speculation that the mumps vaccine was linked to autism, and many parents refused to vaccinate their children with the mumps, measles, and rubella (MMR) immunization. In subsequent years, there has been an increase in the number of cases of the mumps epidemic. Further research has found no conclusive link between the MMR vaccine and autism.
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