Following the outbreak of mumps at three third-level colleges across the State, Irish Times medical correpsondent Dr Muiris Houston gives an overview of the disease.
Mumps is a viral infection of the salivary glands. It particularly targets the parotid gland which lies in front of and below the ear. Typically one parotid gland swells and becomes tender, followed, in 70 per cent of cases, by the other parotid gland one or two days later. Other symptoms include fever, generalised weakness and discomfort when eating or opening the mouth.
Mumps is the commonest cause of infection of the testis, which is given the medical name, orchitis. It occurs in about 20 per cent of males who develop mumps after puberty.
Contrary to popular belief sterility seldom results and can occur only if both testes are affected. Orchitis causes a swelling of the testis with varying degrees of testicular pain. The testis is tender and warm to the touch. In about one third of cases the other testis is affected within a couple of days.
Spread by coughing or sneezing, the virus takes about 18 days to incubate after contact, so it is possible that the outbreak here is linked to that in the UK. However, mumps is only a moderately infectious disease; it can be passed from person to person from two days before symptoms start up to the time the swellings disappear.
The patient should be isolated, especially from adults who have not had mumps. It is recommended that the adolescent not attend school for about nine days from the onset of symptoms.
Considered a mild disease, mumps is treated with paracetamol for pain, rest and a good fluid intake. The application of heat to the glands may help relieve pain.There is no specific treatment for the viral infection.
Mumps is prevented by the MMR vaccine.