City of Tshwane alert following mumps outbreak in Gauteng

Gauteng is one of the provinces that recorded most cases of mumps. The City of Tshwane has urged parents to monitor children.

The City of Tshwane says it remains alert to the outbreak of mumps in Gauteng as approximately 95 cases have been recorded at primary healthcare clinics managed by the municipality.

The National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) recently confirmed the outbreak  in the country with Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng recording most cases.

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CITY OF TSHWANE ALERT TO MUMPS OUTBREAK

Mumps is a viral infection caused by the rubulavirus and affects children mainly between five and nine years of age and mostly occur in winter and spring.

According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, mumps infection is most often confused with swelling of the lymph nodes of the neck. Lymph node swelling can be differentiated by the well-defined borders of the lymph nodes, their location behind the angle of the jawbone, and lack of the ear protrusion or obscuring of the angle of the jaw, which are characteristics of mumps.

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THESE ARE THE SYMPTOMS

Symptoms include discomfort in the salivary glands in the front of the neck and parotid glands (immediately in front of the ears). These glands may become swollen.

Additional symptoms include difficulty chewing, pain and tenderness, pain, fever, headache, muscle aches, tiredness and loss of appetite.

Marx said although there is no cure, treatment is mainly focused on alleviating the symptoms associated with the infection.

Marx encouraged parents and caregivers to monitor children who present the identified symptoms, especially at this time.

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