Number of Mumps Cases in Iowa Still Rising

DES MOINES, Iowa – The number of mumps cases in Iowa has topped 1,000, state health officials said Tuesday.

There were 1,120 confirmed, probable and suspect cases as of Monday, with mumps activity found in 69 out of Iowa’s 99 counties, according to a news release from the Iowa Department of Public Health.

Iowa has been at the center of a mumps outbreak in the Midwest, which is being called the worst in the U.S. in 20 years.

The source of the Iowa outbreak is unknown, but Britain experienced a mumps epidemic that peaked last year with about 56,000 cases. The Iowa mumps virus is the same variety.

Last week, public health officials announced mass immunization clinics for 18- to 22-year-olds – the age group they said is most likely to get the virus. People in that age group may have had only one vaccination, which was the recommended dosage while they were growing up.

The state planned to divvy up 25,000 doses of the vaccine among 35 counties where colleges, universities and other post-secondary institutions are centered. The first phase of immunizations was scheduled for Wednesday through Friday.

Mumps is spread by coughing and sneezing. The most common symptoms are fever, headache and swollen salivary glands under the jaw. It can lead to more severe problems, such as hearing loss, meningitis and swollen testicles, which can lead to infertility. It does not respond to antibiotics.