Mumps is spread like the common cold by direct contact with saliva and discharge from the nose and throat of infected individuals.

Anyone with mumps should not go back to child care, school or work for 9 days after symptoms begin. People who come in contact with a mumps case should have their immunization status evaluated. Anyone who has not received mumps-containing vaccine (preferably MMR vaccine) should be vaccinated. The local health department or a physician can help determine if a person needs one or two doses of MMR vaccine. See similar questions...

Students should not attend classes during their infectious period. Cover your nose and mouth with a disposable tissue when you sneeze or cough and wash your hands frequently. Do not share food or drinks with others. The single most effective control measure is maintaining the highest possible level of immunization in the community. See similar questions...

Mumps is contagious three days prior to and four days after the onset of symptoms. A person is most contagious 48 hours prior to the appearance of symptoms. See similar questions...

The potential for droplet (within three feet) contamination from nasal or oral secretions, or direct contact with saliva, when the case was in the infectious period and without the use of appropriate PPE - gloves and mask, would be considered exposed. There is not a specific length of time. Mumps is droplet spread and contagiousness is similar to influenza and rubella, less than measles and varicella. See similar questions...

of 3/23/06, we have had 5/69 (7 percent) reported cases of orchitis and one possible case of encephalitis. Watch the" Iowa Mumps Update" for current information, and the update is posted weekly on the IDPH web site. See similar questions...

We consider that the entire state of Iowa is in an outbreak situation. Now is the time to take recommended action. The time to work with your media is when you see even one case in your county. See similar questions...

No. For public health purposes, IDPH asks that every new symptomatic case, that is not epi-linked to a known case, be tested. In addition remember to fill out the case report form on all epi-linked cases. See similar questions...

No! People with mumps have a very different condition, even though both involve swelling of the sides of your face. Some people who ask questions are well-meaning, some are curious, and some are just plain rude. You don't have to answer if you don't want to. You can just ignore the question. A simple answer, such as "I was born this way" or "God made me this way" is often enough to satisfy curiosity. People tend to say different things depending on their mood. See similar questions...

Severe complications of mumps are rare. However, mumps can cause acquired sensorineural hearing loss in children; incidence is estimated at 1 in 20,000 cases. Mumps-associated encephalitis occurs in less than 2 per 100,000 cases, and approximately 1% of encephalitis cases are fatal. Some complications of mumps are known to occur more frequently among adults than among children. Adults have a higher risk for mumps meningoencephalitis than children. See similar questions...

VRE is usually passed to others by direct contact with stool, urine or blood containing VRE. It can also be spread indirectly via the hands of healthcare providers or on contaminated environmental surfaces. VRE usually is not spread through casual contact such as touching or hugging. VRE is not spread through the air by coughing or sneezing. See similar questions...

There is still much debate in the scientific community regarding how BSE is spread. At the present time, BSE is thought to be spread in tissue from the central nervous system (brain, spinal cord) as well as distal ileum, some of which can be present in meat and bone meal. BSE is not spread by animal-to-animal contact. In other words, an animal infected with BSE cannot infect another animal with which it is penned or pastured. See similar questions...

Wild waterfowl are the natural reservoir of all influenza A viruses. They have probably carried influenza viruses, including H5 and H7 subtypes in the low pathogenic form with no apparent harm for centuries. Evidence now suggests that migratory birds can introduce low pathogenic H5 and H7 viruses into poultry flocks and these then mutate to the highly pathogenic form. See similar questions...

The primary way that SARS appears to spread is by close person-to-person contact. SARS-CoV is thought to be transmitted most readily by respiratory droplets (droplet spread) produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes. Droplet spread can happen when droplets from the cough or sneeze of an infected person are propelled a short distance (generally up to 3 feet) through the air and deposited on the mucous membranes of the mouth, nose, or eyes of persons who are nearby. See similar questions...

Fire ants reproduce opportunistically when conditions are wet and warm. They are found in all types of soil, but they do better in open pastures and sunny, grassy places than in thick shaded woods. Grassy medians of freeway and mowed pipeline and powerline rights of ways provide prime "freeways" for the ants too. Polygyne colonies (those with multiple queens/mound) can reproduce by budding off new colonies and spread by walking a few meters per year. See similar questions...

TB is spread through the air from one person to another. The bacteria get into the air when a person with TB disease of the lungs or throat coughs, shouts, sings, or sneezes. People nearby may breathe in the bacteria and become infected. You may have been exposed to TB if you spent a lot of time near someone with TB disease of the lungs or throat. Most people get TB from a family member, spouse, friend, or close coworker. See similar questions...

The virus is easily passed from person to person by breathing in air containing virus produced when an infected person talks, coughs or sneezes. It can spread through hand/face contact after touching a person or surface contaminated with the virus. See similar questions...

No, it is the same strain seen in an outbreak in England. The current MMR vaccine covers this strain. No. There is no correlation to disease and vaccination at 12 months of age. Infants used to be routinely vaccinated at 15 months of age. During the 1989-1991 measles resurgence, incidence rates of measles were more than twice as high as those in other age groups. See similar questions...