CDC to Investigate Kansas Mumps Cases: Midwest Outbreak Raises Questions for Federal Scientists
Posted on: Tuesday, 2 May 2006, 06:01 CDT
By Alan Bavley, The Kansas City Star, Mo.
May 02--With 340 mumps cases now reported in Kansas, state health officials have invited the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to join the investigation of the outbreak.
The Kansas cases are part of an outbreak occurring in at least nine Midwestern states. The outbreak was identified first in Iowa, where more than 1,200 cases have been reported.
Six CDC representatives were expected to arrive in Topeka and Lawrence on Monday. They will look at why mumps is occurring among vaccinated people, why the outbreak is concentrated in the Midwest and why it is occurring now.
Mumps cases have been reported in 39 Kansas counties, including Johnson, Wyandotte and Leavenworth. Nearly half the cases, 162, have been in Douglas County, most of them on the University of Kansas campus.
Mumps is a viral infection of the salivary glands. It is spread like a cold through coughs and sneezes or through the use of contaminated eating utensils or drinking cups. Mumps can cause fever and painful swelling around the jaw and cheeks. Complications can include meningitis, hearing loss and swelling of the testicles.
To minimize the spread of the outbreak, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment recommends that people who contract mumps stay home for up to nine days after symptoms occur. The agency also advises people to check their vaccination history to make sure they have received the recommended two doses of measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.
To reach Alan Bavley, call (816) 234-4858 or send e-mail to abavley@kcstar.com .
-----
Copyright (c) 2006, The Kansas City Star, Mo.
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.
For information on republishing this content, contact us at (800) 661-2511 (U.S.), (213) 237-4914 (worldwide), fax (213) 237-6515, or e-mail reprints@krtinfo.com.
Source: The Kansas City Star (Kansas City, Missouri)
Related Articles
- Korea Fair Trade Commission Issues Case Examiner's Report to Qualcomm
- Cholera Outbreak Reported in Namibia
- Yellow Fever Outbreak Reported in Paraguay
- Grade 12, Post-Secondary Students in N.S. To Get Mumps Vaccine After Outbreak
- Bird Flu Outbreak Reported in Thailand
- Mumps Origin a Mystery: Outbreak in Midwest Caused By the Same Strain Found in Nassau Last Year, but Officials Doubt There's a Link
- Virus at Hospital Waning, Doctor Reports: Workers and Patients at Reading Hospital Are Said to Be Contracting the Stomach Flu in Lower Numbers Than They Did When the Outbreak First Occurred Last Month.
- No Outbreak Reported Where Girl Was Infected
- China Has 135,630 Cases of Reported HIV Infection
- Anthrax Outbreak Reported in Kyrgyz South
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds