Mumps: Symptoms, Spread and Prevention

Mumps is a contagious disease caused by a virus that attacks the salivary glands. It can be serious, and it is still common in many countries, which is why vaccination matters. Most people who catch it recover completely within 2 weeks.

Signs and symptoms

Symptoms do not appear right away: it can take 2 to 4 weeks after infection for signs to show. The best-known sign is puffy cheeks and a tender, swollen jaw, caused by swelling of the salivary glands beneath one or both ears. Other common symptoms are fever, tiredness, loss of appetite and headache, and early symptoms can begin a few days before the swelling does. The most serious complication is inflammation of the brain.

Some vaccinated people still get mumps, but their symptoms are usually milder and complications are less common.

How it spreads

The mumps virus spreads through direct contact with saliva or with respiratory droplets from the mouth, nose or throat. People can catch and pass on mumps by:

• coughing, sneezing or talking
• sharing things that may carry saliva, such as cups or water bottles
• close-contact activities such as sports, dancing or kissing

An infected person is contagious from a few days before the salivary glands swell until up to 5 days after the swelling begins.

Who is at risk

Anyone not protected against mumps can get it. Some groups spread it more easily because they are in constant close contact: school-aged children, students at colleges and other post-high-school institutions, and health care workers. People who travel to places where mumps is still common, or who are near an outbreak, are also more likely to catch it.

If you think you have mumps

Tell your doctor right away if you think you or someone in your family has mumps. Limit contact with others for up to 5 days after the swelling begins: stay home from school and work, and skip social events.

Prevention

Two doses of mumps vaccine are the best protection. The vaccine is usually given as the combined measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, which protects against all three diseases. A child's doctor may also offer MMRV, which adds protection against varicella (chickenpox). Getting vaccinated is especially important before traveling abroad.

Since the U.S. mumps vaccination program began in 1967, mumps cases in the United States have fallen by more than 99%.

Sources

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "About Mumps." https://www.cdc.gov/mumps/about/index.html
• CDC, "Mumps Symptoms and Complications": https://www.cdc.gov/mumps/signs-symptoms/index.html; "Mumps Vaccination": https://www.cdc.gov/mumps/vaccines/index.html