Mumps cases 'on the rise' again

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Cases of mumps are once again on the increase, with university students being hardest hit, latest figures from the Health Protection Agency show.

Up to the end of February there were almost 1,000 confirmed cases in England and Wales - more than triple the number in the same periods in 2007 and 2008.

The figures are still far from what was seen in the last major epidemic in 2005 when 43,000 cases were reported.

But experts said they expected to see the high levels continue for some time.

Mumps is a viral infection which causes painful swelling of the parotid or salivary glands near the jaw, making it difficult for people to open their mouth, talk, eat and drink.

The increased occurrence of the disease is mainly amongst older teenagers and young adults in their early twenties, and mostly amongst those in further or higher education establishments Dr Mary Ramsay, HPA

In rare cases it can cause complications including hearing loss (usually temporary) and meningitis. It can also reduce fertility in males.

Rates of measles have also been reported to be increasing due to a decline in uptake of the MMR vaccine, which protects against measles, mumps and rubella.

The mumps outbreaks are not related to this decline, but are happening in young people who were born before the vaccine was introduced in the late 1980s.

Some may have been too old to be included in the vaccination campaign, while others only received one dose of MMR.

Mumps reached epidemic levels four years ago but levels back to fell to 1,476 cases in 2007 before increasing again at the end of last year.

Vaccination

Many young people have been offered vaccination through catch-up campaigns but there are still those who remain unprotected, the Health Protection Agency said.

The Department of Health advise that school-leavers and other young adults who have not received MMR or only received one dose, should ensure that they take up the offer of MMR vaccination.

HPA immunisation expert Dr Mary Ramsay, said: "The increased occurrence of the disease is mainly amongst older teenagers and young adults in their early twenties, and mostly amongst those in further or higher education establishments.

"Some in this age group were too old to be routinely vaccinated with MMR when it was first introduced in 1988. And some others may only have received one dose of MMR.

"The number of cases has increased more steeply in recent years because many of the young adults in this cohort (born between 1981-1989) are now at university or in further education colleges.

"This large number of people in semi-closed institutions allows the disease to pass more easily from one person to another."

She added: "As the susceptible group is quite large we expected to see high numbers of cases to continue over the next few years."

Professor Steve Field, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said it was unpleasant illness which could be extremely painful.

"I have seen two students recently, one a sixth former, with classic mumps and I don't see many patients these days."

He added GPs would be keen to see any young person who wanted to make sure they were vaccinated against MMR.