Mumps
cases throughout the state should prompt parents to vaccinate
  • Multiple
    cases of mumps have been reported throughout Colorado, but Mesa County hasn’t
    had any reports in 2017.
  • Two cases
    were reported in Mesa County between 2012 and 2016. Both of those cases
    occurred in children younger than 18 years.
  • Although
    mumps isn’t often reported in Mesa County, residents should still be sure to
    vaccinate themselves and their family members against the disease.
    • The Centers
      for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends children get two doses of
      the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine.
      • First dose
        at 12 to 15 months of age
      • Second dose
        at four to six years of age
    • Teens and
      adults should also be up-to-date on MMR vaccination, so discuss your
      vaccination records with your health care provider.
  • Vaccination
    is important to keep our community healthy, but it’s especially so if you
    intend on traveling to the Front Range during this time of outbreak.
  • Mumps is
    spread through saliva or mucus from the mouth, nose or throat through coughing,
    sneezing or even talking.
  • Mumps can
    also be spread by sharing items such as cups or eating utensils or after
    touching objects or surfaces with unwashed hands that have been touched by
    someone with the mumps.
    • This is
      especially important for younger age groups who are in close quarters and
      sharing things.
    • Talk to your
      kids about healthy
      handwashing
      habits.
  • Mumps is
    best known for the puffy cheeks and swollen jaw that it causes, due to swollen
    salivary glands.
  • Other
    symptoms include fever, headache, muscle aches, tiredness and loss of appetite.
  • Complications
    due to mumps can be serious sometimes resulting in encephalitis, meningitis or
    deafness.
  • Mesa County
    Health Department offers MMR vaccination on a sliding scale basis. Call
    248-6900 to make an appointment or contact your health care provider.