Mumps Outbreak Hits College Campuses – Protect Yourself!

Dear Students:

There has been a sustained outbreak of mumps among young adults 18-25, including many college students, in Iowa since December, 2005; cases of mumps have now been reported in at least six of Iowa’s neighboring states. Overall, more than 1100 cases have been confirmed and, just recently, two students at Franklin and Marshall (Lancaster, PA) have been diagnosed with mumps and four more cases are suspected. To date, no cases have been identified at Johns Hopkins and no increased mumps activity has been noted in Baltimore City. We want to avoid a mumps outbreak at Johns Hopkins. This email contains important information about mumps and about what you can do to protect yourself.

What is mumps?

Mumps is a viral infection characterized by vague, non-specific symptoms such as low-grade fever, loss of appetite, headache, muscle aches, and malaise. Shortly thereafter, an infected individual will notice the onset of pain and tenderness in the parotid or other salivary glands (the parotid glands are located in the cheeks just in front of the angle of the jaw). The swelling of the glands can occur on either one or both sides of the face. The mumps virus can affect other organs of the body as well, although this is much less common than involvement of the salivary glands. Nonetheless, severe disease is more common among young adults than children.

The mumps virus can be transmitted through direct contact with respiratory droplets, saliva, or contaminated surfaces such as drinking glasses, spoons, bottles, etc. The incubation period (time from exposure to the virus to onset of symptoms) is about 16-18 days. Mumps virus can be isolated from the saliva of an infected person from 2-7 days before onset of symptoms to 9 days after onset of symptoms.

For more information, visit the CDC website:

http://www.cdc.gov/nip/diseases/mumps/default.htm

How is mumps treated?

Because it is caused by a virus, mumps does not respond to antibiotics. Treatment consists of medication like acetaminophen or ibuprofen to treat fever, pain and body aches, as well as bed rest.

What should you do if you think you have mumps?

Contact the Health Center (410-516-8270) immediately. If the Health Center is closed, contact the on-call physician though Security at 410-516-7777. Students with suspected or confirmed mumps should not go to class or to any social gathering until you have been cleared by the Health Center. We will work with infected students to coordinate meals and academic requirements.

What can you do to protect yourself against mumps?

The most important control strategy is immunization. More than 90% of students who have received two doses of the mumps vaccine are immune to mumps. Careful hand washing and avoiding sharing drinks, towels, or eating utensils also will decrease your risk for infection.

How can you find out if you have been properly immunized against mumps?

Because the University has a rigorous pre-entrance immunization requirement, we believe most students at Johns Hopkins are appropriately immunized. Nonetheless, we want to make certain that this is the case. We are therefore asking you to contact your parents or your physician at home to determine if you have received two doses of the mumps vaccine (most students will have received two doses of the MMR - mumps, measles, rubella – combination vaccine). If you cannot contact your parents or your physician, you may call the Health Center to check on your immunization status. However, we are asking you to call home first as we do not have the staff or telephone lines to handle hundreds of phone calls at one time.

If you have received two doses of mumps vaccine, you are considered fully immunized. Because two doses do not confer 100% immunity, we urge you to avoid exposure by practicing good hygiene as outlined above.

If you have received only one dose of mumps vaccine or are unsure, we ask you to contact the Health Center. We will review your medical record and advise you on the next steps. Because of the outbreak, both mumps vaccine and MMR vaccine are in short supply (in fact, they are on back-order). Since our major goal is to minimize any chance of an outbreak gaining hold here, we will give priority for catch-up vaccination to freshman and sophomores living in dorms. Over time, we will offer vaccine to any individual who needs a second dose of vaccine. The cost of the MMR vaccine is $50.00.

Alain Joffe, MD, MPH

Director