Just two weeks after a Marquette student was diagnosed with mumps, two additional cases have been confirmed within residence halls.
Carolyn Smith, the Marquette University Medical Director, established in her email announcement to the University Feb. 8, that the cases are linked the original outbreak.
“The individuals are recovering at home and the City of Milwaukee Health Department has initiated the appropriate follow-up communication with close contacts of the two cases,” Smith said in the email.
Each student is required by the University to have two doses of MMR, or measles, mumps and rubella vaccine before they are allowed to register for classes.
The clinic urges anyone experiencing any tenderness or swelling in the face or jaw – or if any such symptoms develop, even if you have had an MMR vaccine, to contact your healthcare provider or the Marquette Medical clinic.
Additional signs of mumps infection may include fever, fatigue, weakness, or pain with chewing or swallowing. Non-immune individuals are the most at risk of acquiring mumps.
Faculty, staff and students are encouraged to double check their medical records, ensuring they have received the proper vaccinations.
Mumps is spread from an infected person through coughing, sneezing, talking or occasionally through contact with saliva.
It is a viral infection that causes one or more salivary glands, located in the cheeks, below and in front of the ears, to become inflamed, swollen and tender.
