Understanding mumps
MUMPS
is an acute viral infection of the parotid salivary glands – one of three pairs of salivary glands, located below and in front of your ears.
They make saliva, which drains into the mouth and helps to break up and digest food. Mumps is caused by a virus, which is transmitted through airborne droplets from the coughs and sneezes of infected people.
Signs and symptoms
Mumps is generally a mild illness, although in a minority of cases, there can be severe complications, such as deafness and meningitis. This is why children are vaccinated against mumps.
About one-third of people infected with the mumps virus have no signs or symptoms. When signs and symptoms do develop, they usually appear about two to three weeks after exposure to the virus, and may include:
· Swollen, painful salivary glands on one or both sides of the face
· Pain with chewing or swallowing
· Fever
· Weakness and fatigue
· Tenderness and swelling of a testicle (orchitis)
· The primary – and best known – sign of mumps is swollen salivary glands that cause the cheeks to puff out. In fact, the term mumps is an old expression for lumps or bumps within the cheeks.
If you suspect that you or your child has mumps, see your doctor. Mumps has become an uncommon illness, so it’s possible that your symptoms are caused by another more common condition.
Swollen glands and a fever could be an indication of inflamed tonsils (tonsillitis) or a blocked salivary gland. Other, rarer viruses can infect the parotid glands, causing a mumps-like illness.
Screening and diagnosis
If your doctor suspects that you or your child has mumps, a virus culture or serologic blood test may be needed. This blood test can detect mumps antibodies, which indicate whether you have had a recent or past infection.
Complications of mumps
are potentially serious, but rare. These include:
· Orchitis :
This inflammatory condition causes swelling of one or both testicles. Orchitis is painful, but it rarely leads to sterility – the inability to conceive a child.
· Pancreatitis :
This disease causes swelling of the pancreas. Signs and symptoms of Pancreatitis include pain in the upper abdomen, nausea and vomiting.
· Encephalitis :
Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain caused by a viral infection, such as mumps. Encephalitis can lead to neurological problems and become life-threatening. Although it’s serious, encephalitis is a rare complication of mumps.
· Meningitis :
Meningitis is an infection and inflammation of the membranes and fluid surrounding your brain and spinal cord. It can occur if the mumps virus spreads through your bloodstream to infect your central nervous system. Like encephalitis, meningitis is a rare complication of mumps.
· Inflammation of the ovaries :
Pain in the lower abdomen in women may be a symptom of this problem. Fertility doesn’t seem to be affected.
· Hearing loss :
In rare cases, mumps can cause temporary or permanent hearing loss in one or both ears.
Treatment
Because mumps is caused by a virus, antibiotics are not an effective treatment. Like most viral illnesses, a mumps infection must simply run its course. Fortunately, most children and adults recover from an uncomplicated case of mumps within two weeks’ time.
Prevention
Generally, one is considered immune to mumps if you’ve previously had the infection or if you’ve been immunized against mumps.
The mumps vaccine is usually given as a combined measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) inoculation, which contains the safest and most effective form of each vaccine. Doctors recommend that children receive the MMR vaccine between 12 and 15 months of age, and again between three and six years of age – before entering school.
The vaccine is not recommended for:
· Pregnant women or women who plan to get pregnant within the next four weeks.
· People who have had a life-threatening allergic reaction to gelatin or the antibiotic neomycin.
If you have cancer, a blood disorder or another disease that affects your immune system, talk to your doctor before getting an MMR vaccine.
Side-effects of the vaccine
You can’t get mumps from the MMR vaccine, and most people experience no side effects from the vaccine. About 10% of people develop a fever between five and 12 days after the vaccination, and about 5% of people develop a mild rash. Less than one out of a million doses causes a serious allergic reaction.
In recent years, some news reports have raised concerns about a connection between the MMR vaccine and autism. However, extensive reports from the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Institute of Medicine and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conclude that there’s no scientifically proven link between the MMR vaccine and autism.
In addition, there’s no scientific benefit to separating the vaccines. These organisations note that autism is often identified in toddlers between the ages of 18 and 30 months, which happen to be about the time children are given their first MMR vaccine. But this coincidence in timing shouldn’t be mistaken to be a cause-and-effect relationship.
Source :
Book of Pediatrics "Rypins' Intensive Reviews "