Iowa health officials say mumps outbreak is contained after nearly 2,000 cases

(AP) The number of mumps cases in Iowa has declined dramatically over the past few weeks, and an outbreak of nearly 2,000 cases appears to be contained, state public health officials said Friday.

"People became more aware of it, people were being diagnosed faster, staying home when they had mumps so they are not transmitting it, and we had many more people get vaccinated, so our number of susceptible people went down," said Dr. Patricia Quinlisk, state epidemiologist.

Iowa was the worst hit of 12 states, mostly in the Midwest, that have reported a total of more than 3,200 mumps cases. No deaths and few hospitalizations have been reported, but the numbers dwarf mumps reports from recent years.

As of Wednesday, there were 1,938 confirmed and probable cases of mumps reported by the Iowa Department of Public Health. The number was up just 14 cases from the previous week.

Once a childhood rite of passage, mumps has been on the wane since a vaccine came along in the late 1960s. Generally a two-dose shot of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine is recommended for all children, a regimen considered effective at preventing the virus in about 90 percent of patients.

The latest outbreak hit colleges especially hard, and health officials believe it's partly because many of those students were born before 1989 and got only one dose of vaccine.

Iowa health officials offered free immunizations to all 18- to 22-year-olds after the outbreak started in December, then expanded the group to 18- to 46-year-olds. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta and a drug company have been providing extra vaccine.

State health officials have warned that mumps cases typically declines from spring to summer, but could rise again in the fall. They are encouraging college students to get vaccinated before they return to school.

Mumps is a virus spread by coughing and sneezing. The most common symptoms are fever, headache and swollen salivary glands under the jaw. It can lead to more severe problems, such as hearing loss, meningitis and swollen testicles, which can lead to infertility.

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On the Net:

Iowa Department of Public Health: http://www.idph.state.ia.us/