Common symptoms for mumps include:

• Swollen glands under the ears or jaw (parotitis)
• Fever
• Headache
• Muscle aches
• Tiredness
• Loss of appetite

Mumps can cause several health complications, especially for adults, including:

• Swelling of the testicles in men who have reached puberty (also called orchitis – rarely, this can lead to the testicles atrophying and/or the inability to have children)
• Inflammation of one or both ovaries (oophoritis)
• Swelling of breast tissue (mastitis)
• Swelling of the brain (encephalitis)
• Swelling of the tissue that covers the brain and spinal cord (meningitis)
• Deafness (temporary or permanent)
• Inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis)

Mumps spreads from person to person through direct contact with saliva or respiratory droplets from the mouth, nose, or throat. A person infected with mumps can spread the virus by:

• Coughing, sneezing, or talking
• Sharing items that may have saliva on them such as utensils or water bottles
• Participating in close contact activities with others such as sports or kissing

A person with mumps can spread the disease up to 2 days before their swelling starts and up to 5 days after their swelling starts.

If you are confirmed to have mumps, you should stay away from other people until the 6th day after your swelling started. This will help make sure that you do not spread mumps to others.

If you think you or someone in your family may have mumps because you or they have symptoms, have not been vaccinated against mumps, and/or have been traveling:

• Stay home and call your doctor right away and let them know of your concerns.
• Your doctor may be able to determine if you have protection against mumps based on your vaccine record or previous lab results.
• Your doctor may also make special arrangements to evaluate you to limit risk to other patients and staff. If your doctor tells you to come in for testing, make sure to wear a facemask that covers your nose and mouth.
• Stay away from other people and stay away from places where there are large groups of people who are at higher risk of getting sick, such as schools, daycare, and hospital or urgent care waiting rooms, before speaking to your doctor. This will help make sure that you do not spread mumps to others.

If you think you have been exposed to someone with mumps:

• Call your doctor right away to let them know you may have been exposed to someone with mumps.
• Your doctor may be able to determine if you have protection against mumps based on your vaccine record or previous lab results.
• Your doctor may also make special arrangements to evaluate you to limit risk to other patients and staff. If your doctor tells you to come in for testing, make sure to wear a facemask that covers your nose and mouth.
• Do not leave your home until your doctor says it is okay. Stay away from places where there are large groups of people who are at higher risk of getting sick, such as schools, daycare, and hospital or urgent care waiting rooms. This will help make sure that you do not spread mumps to others.

The mumps vaccine is safe and works well in preventing mumps. Everyone including children, teenagers, and adults should get two doses of mumps vaccine if they were never vaccinated.

One dose of a mumps vaccine is about 78% effective, and two doses are about 88% effective at preventing mumps. However, vaccine effectiveness can vary between individuals, and protection may wane over time. Because of this, even fully vaccinated individuals who develop symptoms of mumps should still be tested for mumps.

There are two types of mumps vaccines:

• Measles-mumps-rubella vaccine (MMR) for people who are 12 months old and older.
• Measles-mumps-rubella-varicella vaccine (MMRV) for people who are 12 months to 12 years old.

If you have insurance:

• Talk to your doctor or check with your local pharmacy to see what vaccines they offer.
• Most health insurance plans cover the cost of recommended vaccines for children and adults.

If you are uninsured or underinsured:

• Programs are available to help cover the cost of vaccines.
• Children 18 years or younger may receive vaccines at no cost through the Vaccines for Children (VFC) Program if they are:
  • Eligible for or are enrolled in Medi-Cal
  • American Indian or Alaskan Native
  • Uninsured (do not have health insurance)
  • Underinsured (private health insurance does not cover the full cost of vaccines)
• Adults who are uninsured or underinsured may be able to get free or low-cost vaccines at clinics enrolled in the Vaccines for Adults (VFA) program. For more information on who is eligible, read VFA Eligibility Based on Insurance Status.

Locating Vaccine Clinics:

• A list of free and low-cost clinics in Los Angeles County.
• Interactive county map to locate free and low-cost vaccine clinics.
• Call 1-833-540-0473 (Public Health InfoLine) for a list of free or low-cost vaccine clinics. This includes Vaccines for Children (VFC) provider locations that serve Medi-Cal eligible children and uninsured or underinsured adults.

• Mumps Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ - LAC DPH)
  •  English | Spanish | հայերեն | 简体中文 | 繁體中文 | 한국어
• Immunization Schedules: Birth to 6 Years Old | 7 to 18 Years Old | 19 Years Old and Older (AAP & AAFP)
• What You Need to Know: MMR Vaccine | MMRV Vaccine (Immunize.org)
• Mumps: Questions and Answers (Immunize.org)
• Mumps (History of Vaccines)
• What to Know About Mumps (AAP)
• Travelers' Health: Travel Vaccines (LAC DPH)

Mumps cases continue to occur in the United States and can lead to serious complications. It is important to consider mumps when evaluating any vaccinated or unvaccinated patient who presents any of the traditional mumps symptoms.

• Prodromal symptoms typically appear 16-18 days (with a range of 12 to 25 days) after exposure and begins with a low-grade fever, headache, myalgia, fatigue, and anorexia. Prodromal symptoms are then most commonly followed by parotitis (or other salivary gland swelling) which lasts 5 days on average. Salivary gland swelling, pain and tenderness occur within 48 hours of prodrome onset. Symptoms tend to decrease after 1 week and usually resolve after 10 days.
  • 40-50% of people who get mumps have very mild symptoms (like a cold) or no symptoms and may not know they have the disease.
• Complications may include: orchitis, oophoritis, mastitis, pancreatitis, hearing loss, or neurologic manifestations including meningitis and encephalitis.
• Mumps is transmitted through respiratory secretions or droplets from the respiratory tract, and sometimes through fomites. A person with mumps is considered contagious 2 days before parotitis onset until 5 days after.

• Patients with signs or symptoms of mumps should be isolated from other patients prior to or as soon as possible after entry into the facility.
• Patients with suspected mumps should wear a well-fitted medical mask or respirator and be placed in an airborne infection isolation room if one is available. If an isolation room is not available, escort masked patient away from other patients directly to a private room for evaluation and specimen collection.
• Regardless of prior immunity status, all healthcare staff entering the same room as the patient should use respiratory protection consistent with airborne infection control precautions.
• Although the mumps virus has been isolated from saliva up to 9 days after onset, isolation beyond 5 days is not currently recommended.

Please contact the LAC DPH Vaccine-Preventable Disease Control Program to report a case or obtain any other technical assistance with specimen collection or completion of forms for mumps or any other vaccine-preventable disease.

Suspected or confirmed mumps cases are to be reported within 7 calendar days from identification by electronic transmission (email or digital fax) or telephone per Title 17, California Code of Regulations (CCR), Section 2500.

• Weekdays Telephone: 8:30 am to 5:00 pm: Call 213-351-7800
• After Hours: Call 213-974-1234, option 8
• Email: vpdc@ph.lacounty.gov
• Fax number: 213-351-2782

Please send the patient’s medical records and any available immunization records and/or laboratory results via secure email or fax.

Consultation with VPDC is required before sending specimens to the Public Health Laboratory. Follow the Checklist for Managing Patients Suspected of Having Mumps for specific instructions.

• Buccal Swab for Reverse Transcriptase-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) testing: Collect buccal swab specimen within 3-9 days of parotitis onset or clinical suspicion of mumps. CDPH recommends collecting the specimen as soon as possible, ideally within the first 3 days, to optimize viral detection.
  • Store buccal swab specimen refrigerated at 2-8C. Transport refrigerated on cold packs to the laboratory as soon as possible within 24 hours of collection.
  • If storage beyond 24 hours is necessary, freeze specimen at -20°C or lower and transport frozen on dry ice.
• Serum for Serology Antibody IgM/IgG testing: Supplemental to RT-PCR testing, the optimal time for serum specimen collection is 4 or more days after symptom onset.
  • Serum specimens should be refrigerated at 2-8°C within 8 hours of collection and may be stored at this temperature for up to 48 hours.
  • If storage beyond 48 hours is necessary, the serum should be frozen at -20°C or lower. Serum specimens can be stored frozen for up to 8 weeks.

If a commercial lab cannot perform testing, please call the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health Vaccine-Preventable Disease Control Program at 213-351-7800 for assistance.

There is no post-exposure prophylaxis available for mumps. However, vaccination after exposure with mumps-containing vaccines (MMR or MMRV) is not harmful and may possibly prevent subsequent disease if re-exposed.

There is no treatment for mumps. Mumps generally self-resolves, and therapy is symptom-based and supportive, such as the use of analgesics as needed. Standard immunoglobulin or gamma-globulin preparations do not appear to be effective treatment options based on the available research to date.

Administration Data: California healthcare providers are required to report data on all valid immunizations that they administer to their patients into the California Immunization Registry (CAIR) within 2 weeks of administration per AB 1797.

Administration Errors: Healthcare providers are strongly recommended to report all vaccine administration errors to the Institute for Safe Medication Practices.

Adverse Events: Healthcare providers are required to report any adverse event on the reportable events list to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) per HR 5546.

Storage and Handling: For general recommendations and guidance access the Vaccine Storage and Handling Job Aids.

• Checklist: Managing Patients Suspected of Having Mumps (LAC DPH)
• Mumps B73 (LAC DPH)
• Mumps Quicksheet (CDPH)
• Immunization Schedules: Birth to 18 Years (AAP) | 19 Years and Older (AAFP) | CA Healthcare Personnel (CDPH)
• Vaccine Information Statements (Immunize.org): MMR | MMRV
• Standing Orders for Administering MMR: Adults | Children and Teens (Immunize.org)
• Ask the Experts: MMR (Measles, Mumps, and Rubella) Vaccination (Immunize.org)
• Los Angeles Health Alert Network (LAHAN) (LAC DPH)