Mumps is an acute, contagious, viral illness characterized by painful enlargement of the parotid glands, just below and in front of the ear, and at times, the salivary glands under the jaw and sometimes of the pancreas, ovaries, or testes. Mumps is an illness that is caused by a viral infection which is usually passed on from one person to another through the transmission of saliva when kissing or by airborne droplets expelled when one coughs or sneezes. This illness is more common amongst children, although adults are also susceptible to it. Mumps is a disease caused by a virus that usually spreads through saliva and can infect many parts of the body, especially the parotid salivary glands. These glands, which produce saliva for the mouth, are found toward the back of each cheek, in the area between the ear and jaw. In cases of mumps, these glands typically swell and become painful.

Anyone who is not immune from either previous mumps infection or from vaccination can get mumps. Before the routine vaccination program was introduced in the United States, mumps was a common illness in infants, children and young adults. Because most people have now been vaccinated, mumps is now a rare disease in the United States. Of those people who do get mumps, up to half have very mild, or no symptoms, and therefore do not know they were infected with mumps.

Bed rest, plenty to drink and paracetamol for the fever and pain are the only recommended measures. Application of cold packs over the enlarged glands may help to decrease the discomfort. The patient is usually infectious from about 1 week before symptoms appear until about 4 days after the swelling occurs. To prevent the illness, mumps vaccine is given together with the measles and rubella between the ages of 1 and 2. A booster dose is given just before starting school. The vaccine can also be given to adults if needed.

Mumps is most common around the month of March. It usually appears in scattered individual cases, though there are occasional local epidemics among unvaccinated children. It's less infectious than chickenpox or measles. Unvaccinated adults who never had the disease are at much higher risk of complications than are children, but mumps rarely because serious damage. Mumps is a viral infection of the parotid salivary glands. These glands are located just below and in front of the ears. They produce saliva, which drains into the mouth and helps to break up and digest food. Mumps is a disease, usually of children, caused by a virus. With mumps, your salivary glands swell. Specifically, these are the parotid glands, and they are located below and in front of each ear.

A physical examination confirms the presence of the swollen glands. Usually the disease is diagnosed on clinical grounds and no confirmatory laboratory testing is needed. If there is uncertainty about the diagnosis, a test of saliva, urine, or blood may be carried out; a newer diagnostic confirmation, using real-time nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology, has also been developed. An estimated 20%-30% of cases are asymptomatic.


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