Mumps Outbreak

From Chicago Tribune:

The mumps outbreak that has spread from Iowa to infect 72 people in Illinois amounts to a rare encore appearance of a disease that once was an ever-present fixture of childhood.

The latest outbreak is tiny compared with other illnesses that still cause widespread problems, such as influenza or strep infections. Yet experts say the local bump in mumps cases is a reminder of the risks that remain even from a virus that has been largely eliminated from this country.

One downside to the near-universal vaccination against childhood afflictions such as mumps and chickenpox is that the diseases can strike with more force when people contract them as adults. Most of the recent patients in Iowa and Illinois have been college age or older. Though mumps rarely causes serious medical problems, young men who contract the disease can have fertility problems later.

I heard about the mumps outbreak last week, and couldn't believe it. When was the last time anyone saw this disease? This was something we learned about in medical along with smallpox, but never treated anyone with it.

Head on over to here for a brush up on this reemerging disease.

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