The 9 signs of testicle-swelling mumps virus that can prove fatal as UK faces epidemic

Prior to the introduction of a vaccine in the late 1980s, MUMPS was a prevalent childhood ailment.

Currently, it is quite uncommon.

However, epidemics among unvaccinated groups still occur occasionally in the UK, usually occurring every three to four years.

A mumps outbreak is predicted to strike Britain in the near future, experts warn, with teens and young people being particularly vulnerable.

Painful enlargements of the salivary glands, especially the parotid glands, are the most obvious sign of the viral illness.

Because of this, a person who has mumps has a characteristic “hamster face” look.

However, the face is not the only bodily part that may expand; in rare instances, the brain, ovaries, pancreas, and testes may also enlarge.

Understanding some of the signs could save lives since the number of cases is expected to rise this winter or the one after.

Symptoms of measles usually occur 12 days after infection.

They may consist of:

1. Swelling of the parotid glands (hamster face) – this can make it difficult to speak and chew
2. Headache
3. Joint pain
4. Feeling sick
5. Dry mouth
6. Mild abdominal pain
7. Feeling tired
8. Loss of appetite
9. A high temperature

According to the NHS, mumps doesn’t create any obvious symptoms in roughly one in six instances.

Mumps, which usually affects adolescents and teenagers, has no known cure, and symptoms usually go away in a week or two.

Because the tainted saliva droplets are passed from person to person, the virus can spread similarly to how you catch the flu and cold.

According to NHS guidelines, you should “stay at home” for five days following the onset of symptoms.

COMPLICATIONS

In children, mumps is usually mild, but in young people who have not received the vaccination, it can cause major difficulties.

Often called the “Wakefield cohort,” this group was affected by the vaccine-autism fear of the 1990s, which resulted in a decrease in MMR vaccines among now-18-26-year-olds.

Mumps in adults can cause testicular enlargement, which has been connected to infertility.

Professor Paul Hunter, a medical expert at the University of East Anglia, told The Sun that you don’t want to get mumps before you start trying to conceive and then discover that it has rendered you infertile.

Testicular shrinkage is a symptom of mumps-related orchitis in slightly less than half of all male patients.

Infertility may result from a decline in sperm count, which affects an estimated 10% of males.

Ovarian inflammation, or ovaritis, is another severe side effect of mumps that usually does not lead to infertility.

Viral meningitis, in which the virus spreads to the outer regions of the brain, is an additional risk.

It affects one in four mumps patients and manifests as headache, stiff neck, and light sensitivity.

Although symptoms should still be reported, it is typically not thought to be life-threatening, unlike bacterial meningitis.

Meningitis can occasionally result in encephalitis, a rare but dangerous side effect.

Encephalitis, or swelling of the brain, is a potentially fatal condition that requires admission to intensive care.

This only occurs in around one in 1,000 people who get viral meningitis from mumps

The infection can affect your ears and lead to temporarydeafness.

This occurs in about one in 25 cases and will only be permanent in about one in 20,000 cases.

It can also trigger acutepancreatitis, a serious condition that occurs when the pancreas becomes inflamed or swollen.

Although pancreatitis associated with mumps is usually mild, you may be admitted to the hospital so your body functions can be supported until your pancreas recovers.

In the past, it was thought mumps could causemiscarriageif it was contracted in the first trimester.

There isn t much evidence to support this, but the NHS advises pregnant women to avoid close contact with people who have an active mumps infection and contact their GP if they re been in contact with someone with the virus.

‘JUST A MATTER OF TIME’

Mumps is prevented by the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine, which also protects against measles and rubella.

But uptake has plummeted to a 15-year low, causing a surge in measles cases this year.

There were just 36 reports of mumps last year compared to 5,718 in 2019 and 3,738 in 2020, so medics say a boom could be recorded this winter.

Dr Andre Charlett, from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), told The Sun: Cases are so low at the moment that they are bound to bounce back maybe this winter or next.

It s likely we ll see a sudden surge in cases, similar to the measles outbreak we saw last year.”

At this point, it s just a matter of time before the UK sees a rise in mumps cases, said Dr Susan Hahn , a senior medical epidemiologist and vaccine expert, from Amsterdam told The Sun at the ESCAIDE conference in Stockholm.

Teenagers and young adults are currently considered the most vulnerable to mumps due to their close contact and the fact a large group in that cohort remain unvaccinated.

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