Mumps

Mumps is a contagious viral illness.

Prevalence
Before the invention of a vaccine, nearly everyone in the US got mumps at some point in their lifetime. From 2008 through 2017, the number of mumps cases reported in the United States each year averaged 2,130 (1 in 150,000 population) but varied from 229 (in 2012) to 6,369 (in 2016).

Transmission
Mumps is about as contagious as the flu, and spreads by airborne transmission or by direct contact with infected droplets or saliva Someone who has had mumps is considered immune for the rest of their life.

Symptoms and complications
Symptoms typically begin 16-18 days after a person is exposed to mumps virus, but this period can range from 12 to 25 days. Illness starts with a general feeling of unwellness, including muscle aches, loss of appetite, headache, and low-grade fever. Painful swelling of the salivary glands is a common symptom that generally begins in the first 2 days of illness, symptoms usually resolve after 10 days. Some people may be infected but show no symptoms.

The following rates of complications have been reported by the CDC.

Prevention
Two doses of MMR vaccine make 88% of children immune to mumps, vaccination also reduces the severity of infection in those who do not become completely immune.