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County Says Boy's Mumps Case No Cause for Alarm: Lab Tests Pending on 2 Other Potential Cases, Health Officials Say

Posted on: Friday, 5 May 2006, 06:03 CDT

By Karen Garloch, The Charlotte Observer, N.C.

May 5--An 8-year-old Mecklenburg boy has been diagnosed with mumps, the first case in the county since 2002. But health officials say they don't think the child's illness is related to the mumps outbreak in the Midwest.

Two other Mecklenburg elementary-school children may also have mumps, but lab tests are not complete, said Dr. Stephen Keener, medical director of the county health department. The three children attend different schools, and their illnesses don't appear to be related, he said.

"This should not be interpreted as an alarm," Keener said. "We are doing everything we can to prevent further cases. ...We are not really expecting to have any problems."

The recent outbreak of more than 1,100 cases in the Midwest prompted county health officials to ask local doctors to be on the alert for mumps-like symptoms. Nationally, an average of 250 cases are reported annually, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

North Carolina has reported only one other case this year, in Swain County. The state had 13 cases in 2005 and five in 2004. South Carolina has reported three cases this year, the first since 2003, when there were six.

The local 8-year-old, as well as many of those who became ill in the Midwest, had been vaccinated against the mumps, Keener said. Because vaccines are not 100 percent effective, he said people should still wash their hands carefully, cover their coughs and stay home when they're sick to prevent spreading infectious diseases.

The 8-year-old was seen by doctors in mid-April after his mother noticed his cheeks were swollen. Health officials sent letters to parents of children in his after-school day-care program. Then, this week, after test results confirmed the child had mumps, another set of letters went to parents of children at the day care and the elementary school.

Most people born before Jan. 1, 1957, contracted mumps as children and are immune, Keener said. Adults born after that date should consider getting vaccinated if they have not had the mumps or the vaccine, he said.

The mumps vaccine is routinely given at age 15 months and after the fourth birthday. Keener said parents should check children's immunization records to make sure they got two doses.

What This Means To You

Mumps vaccine (called MMR because it includes vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella) is the best way to prevent the disease. It's usually given at age 15 months and after a child's fourth birthday. People born after Jan. 1, 1957, who have not had the mumps or have not been vaccinated should get a vaccine.

SOURCE: Mecklenburg County Health Department

4B | How does one catch the mumps? What are symptoms?

Mumps Q&A

Q. How does someone catch mumps?

Through a contagious virus that is usually spread in tiny drops of fluid from the mouth or nose of an infected person. It is contagious for three days before symptoms appear and about nine days after. Symptoms can appear in 14 to 25 days after exposure.

Q. What are the symptoms?

They include fever, muscle aches, loss of appetite, fatigue, headache, earache, tenderness or pain in the jaw and swelling of the salivary glands in the cheeks. Complications can include viral meningitis, inflammation of the pancreas and loss of hearing. Complications in adults include inflammation of the testicles or ovaries.

Q. How do you treat mumps?

There is no treatment. It usually gets better on its own. It can take two weeks for swelling to subside.

SOURCE: Mecklenburg County Health Department

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Charlotte Observer, N.C.

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Source: The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, N.C.)

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