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Mumps in Lake County - Plotkin
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The Lake County Health Department/Community Health Center (LCHD/CHC) is continuing to investigate a mumps outbreak at Barrington High School. As of March 24, six confirmed cases and 16 probable cases have been reported at Barrington High School. Normally, only 2 to 3 reports of mumps on average have been received in Lake County annually. Cases are now reported primarily among Lake County high school students and Cook County middle school students with many of those people having one or more MMR vaccinations. Some cases also reside in DuPage, Kane and McHenry counties.
In the United States and in Illinois, the number of mumps cases can vary each year. The disease typically peaks in late winter or spring, frequently coinciding with peak influenza season. Because of this mumps increase, and the fact that schools will be dismissing for spring break, we would like to remind health care providers to be vigilant in looking for signs and symptoms of mumps, especially in those attending schools. Please consult with your local health department regarding testing of persons with parotitis for mumps and influenza.
Mumps is an acute vaccine-preventable viral illness transmitted by respiratory droplets and saliva with an incubation period of 12-25 days. Up to half of people who get mumps have very mild or no symptoms, and therefore do not know they were infected with mumps. The most common symptoms include: low grade fever, headache, muscle aches, tiredness, loss of appetite, swollen and tender salivary glands under the ears on one or both sides. Orchitis, oophoritis, meningitis, encephalitis, hearing loss, mastitis, and pancreatitis can also occur but are rare.
Parotitis can also be caused by other pathogens such as influenza, parainfluenza, and Epstein Barr virus among a few others, therefore, testing for other pathogens can help differentiate between mumps and another viral illness. CDC recommends that, during the 20...
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