The City of Milwaukee Health Department has confirmed a case of mumps in a Marquette student, according to a university email sent Friday afternoon to the Marquette community.
According to the email, students who have potentially been in contact with the student involved received a second, earlier email. Individuals who were present in the Union Sports Annex between 3 p.m. and 11 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 4 may also have been exposed, the email said, and should monitor their health for symptoms of mumps until Sept. 30.
The grade, sex, college and identity of the student involved were not identified in the email.
According to the Mayo Clinic’s website, mumps is “a viral infection that primarily affects the parotid glands — one of three pairs of salivary glands, located below and in front of your ears.” Common symptoms include fever, headache, muscle ache and fatigue followed by the onset of swollen and sore salivary glands under the ears, according to the site.
All Marquette students are required to have received two doses of the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine, which are “an effective way to prevent up to 95 percent of mumps infections,” before being allowed to register for classes at the university, according to the email.
From the Marquette email: “If you experience any tenderness or swelling in the face or jaw, even if you have had an MMR vaccine, you should remain in your residence and contact Student Health Service or your primary care physician immediately.”
During a 2006 mumps case at Marquette, the Tribune contacted Paul Biedrzycki, then the manager of disease control and prevention for the Milwaukee Health Department, who said there are four criteria in determining whether an individual is immune from the mumps: “including having two Measles, Mumps and Rubella vaccinations, having one MMR vaccination and being born before 1957, having a medically-documented history of mumps disease or having a blood test showing immunity to mumps.”