Verified By Apollo Hospitals October 1, 2024
Mumps is a viral infection, which spreads easily and can infect many parts of the body, but mainly affects the salivary glands which are situated toward the back of each cheek in between the ear and jaw. Mumps causes swelling and pain of the salivary glands.
The main cause is the mumps virus, and it easily spreads from person to person through infected saliva, sneezing or coughing and sharing utensils with the infected person. Onset of the symptoms usually takes 14-18 days after exposure to the virus.
Very mild symptoms are seen and these include fever, headache, loss of appetite, weakness, pain in chewing or swallowing and swollen cheeks.
A simple examination can confirm mumps as the swelling in the jaw just in front of the ears is visible. A culture is performed by swabbing the inside of the throat or cheek. The swab helps in collecting mucus and cells, which is sent to a laboratory to be tested for the mumps virus. Presence of antibodies in the blood against the mumps virus will easily confirm the viral infection.
Since mumps is a viral infection, it cannot be treated with antibiotics and it simply resolves on its own within two weeks. Pain killers such as ibuprofen or paracetamol can be used, and applying cold packs on the swollen area may also be helpful.
Home remedies include pain relievers, complete rest, keeping ice/cold compress on swollen areas, serving soft/bland diet that doesn’t involve a lot of chewing, increase intake of fluids and isolation of the patient to prevent the spreading of the disease.
Serious mumps complications may happen but they are quite rare in occurrence. Mainly inflammation and swelling in some parts of the body are seen:
MMR (measles-mumps-rubella) vaccination is the safest and most effective procedure to prevent mumps. Two doses of MMR are usually given at the age of 12-15 months and second at 4-6 years of age or 11-12 years of age if not given previously.
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