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Signs and symptoms

Typical symptoms include fever (low-grade – 38.3°C – or as high as 40.6°C), loss of appetite, and headache. One or two days after the onset of these symptoms, one or more of the salivary glands become painfully swollen; the swelling lasts about a week.

The diagnosis of a typical case of mumps is obvious from the swelling of the parotid salivary gland that lies behind, below, and in front of the earlobe. Only a swelling of the parotid gland has the ear-lobe as its center. Other salivary glands, such as the salivary glands which lie under the edge of the jaw, may be swollen with or without swelling of the parotids. Swelling may occur on one or both sides of the face.

Accurately diagnosing mumps may be difficult if complications of mumps develop before, or sometimes even without, swelling of the salivary glands. If the pancreas or ovaries are involved, the child will have abdominal pain. If the testes are involved, they will be swollen and tender. Encephalitis has symptoms of stiff neck, headache, and fever. In the absence of swollen salivary glands, these other symptoms may be difficult to link with mumps.

Home care

Rest and isolation are recommended until all symptoms have gone. Aspirin or paracetamol may be given to reduce pain and fever. Avoid feeding the child spicy foods.

Precautions

• Routine immunization against mumps is strongly advised.

• If a mother is immune to mumps (because she has had it or has been vaccinated against it), her baby acquires some temporary immunity before birth. This immunity lasts only until the infant is four to six months old.

• In an adult man, inflammation of the testes caused by mumps can result in sterility – the inability to conceive a child. That is why it is important for males to be vaccinated against mumps in childhood.

• Attacks that seem to recur are not due to mumps but to inflammation of the parotid salivary gland, a stone in the salivary duct, or a bacterial infection of the gland. These disorders should be reported to your doctor.

Medical treatment

If complications are suspected, your doctor may order a spinal tap to test for meningitis or encephalitis or blood tests to measure the number of mumps antibodies in the blood. (Antibodies are protective substances that the body produces to fight against disease.) Doctors do not follow any specific treatment for mumps, but may hospitalize a child if necessary to arrive at a diagnosis or to provide supportive treatment.

An unvaccinated child may receive mumps vaccine shortly after exposure to the disease to prevent mumps.

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•     There appears to be a link between alcohol and high blood pressure. Withdrawal of alcohol from someone who is used to drinking produces a rise in blood pressure before there is a fall. The re-introduction of alcohol then produces a rise in pressure within a few days. It is best to avoid alcohol altogether, if you have high blood pressure.

•     Saturated fats may play a part. Research in Finland suggests that reducing the ratio of saturated to polyunsaturated fats in the diet may reduce blood pressure. This is independent of the effects on cholesterol and unrelated to dietary salt intake.

•     There are several studies which suggest that the Pill causes a small but significant rise in blood pressure. It probably makes sense to use another method of contraception if you are at all worried about your blood pressure, if there is a history of blood pressure in your immediate family, or if you are over 35.

•    Lead and cadmium are dangerous to those who work with them. They should be avoided in the workplace whenever possible.

•    One of the main features of modern food processing has been to reduce the amount of potassium we consume. Cooking vegetables in large volumes of water also reduces their potassium content and the adding of salt during cooking does the same. Giving potassium to people with normal blood pressure reduces the blood pressure. It is also well proven that vegetarians (who consume more potassium than the rest of the population) have lower blood pressures than do omnivores. It thus seems sensible, if you have high blood pressure, to include potassium-rich foods in your diet and to cook carefully so as to retain the potassium you buy. Also, restrict salt intake to help the potassium do its job.

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