Mumps

On this page

Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Symptoms
• Diagnosis and Tests
• Prevention and Risk Factors

Learn More

• Related Issues

See, Play and Learn

• Images

Research

• Statistics and Research
• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Find an Expert

For You

• Men
• Women
• Patient Handouts

Summary

Mumps is an illness caused by the mumps virus. It starts with:

• Fever
• Headache
• Muscle aches
• Tiredness
• Loss of appetite

After that, the salivary glands under the ears or jaw become swollen and tender. The swelling can be on one or both sides of the face. Symptoms last 7 to 10 days. Serious complications are rare.

You can catch mumps by being with another person who has it. There is no treatment for mumps, but the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine can prevent it.

Before the routine vaccination program in the United States, mumps was a common illness in infants, children and young adults. Now it is a rare disease in the U.S.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Start Here

• About Mumps (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Mumps (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• Mumps (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

Symptoms

• Signs and Symptoms of Mumps (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish

Diagnosis and Tests

• Antibody Serology Tests (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
• Measles and Mumps Tests (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish

Prevention and Risk Factors

• Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) Vaccination: What Everyone Should Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• MMR (Measles, Mumps and Rubella) Vaccine: What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF Also in Spanish
• MMRV (Measles, Mumps, Rubella, and Varicella) Vaccine: What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF Also in Spanish
• Transmission of Mumps (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish

Related Issues

• Complications of Mumps (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish
• Measles, Mumps, Rubella (MMR) Vaccine Safety Information (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Images

• Mumps Photos (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish

Statistics and Research

• Mumps Cases and Outbreaks (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Also in Spanish

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Mumps (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Epidemiological characteristics and spatiotemporal analysis of mumps at township level in...
• Article: Safety of Measles-Mumps-Rubella booster vaccination in patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis:...
• Article: Evaluation of the Interactions between Mumps Virus and Guinea Pig.
• Mumps -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Also in Spanish
• National Foundation for Infectious Diseases
• National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Men

• Orchitis (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)

Women

• Measles, Mumps, Rubella and the MMR Vaccine during Pregnancy (Organization of Teratology Information Specialists) - PDF Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

• MMR (Measles, Mumps and Rubella) Vaccine: What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF Also in Spanish
• MMRV (Measles, Mumps, Rubella, and Varicella) Vaccine: What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF Also in Spanish
• Mumps (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Mumps and the Vaccine (Shot) to Prevent It (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF
• Orchitis (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish