Picture: Acting Infection Prevention Coordinator at Joe Morolong Memorial Hospital in Vryburg, Phemelo Nthomeletsa/Supplied
By OBAKENG MAJE
The Joe Morolong Memorial Hospital in Vryburg has recorded few cases of mumps since the outbreak. According to the acting Infection Prevention Coordinator at the hospital, Phemelo Nthomeletsa, the spread of mumps can be attributed to droplets of saliva or mucus of an infected person.
He said the hospital wishes to caution members of the community regarding the outbreak of mumps, which was declared on 11 May 2023 by the National Institute of Communicable Disease (NICD). Nthomeletsa further said, the hospital has currently recorded a few cases of mumps and this has resulted in the activation of the preventative measures.
“We would like to increase the awareness amongst the community we operate in. This will also ensure that the hospital personnel is compliant in addressing cases of mumps and adhere to the correct use of personal protective equipment. e.g correct wearing of surgical musk.
“The symptoms include headache, fever, malaise, loss of appetite and the glands near the ears swell resulting in puffy cheeks and swollen jaw, which causes severe pain. While predominantly the virus affects children, we advise that as a preventative measure, sharing of things that have saliva should be avoided to curb the spread of the virus,” he said.
Nthomeletsa added that covering the mouth and nose while a person is coughing and sneezing will reduce the spread of the virus drastically. He said most importantly, they advise people to wash their hands often with soap and water including maintaining high hygiene through cleaning and disinfecting surfaces.
“Signs and symptoms of mumps can develop within 16 – 18 days after one is exposed to it. Children aged 5 to 9 years old are most commonly affected, but it can also affect people of any age. There is no cure for mumps, only supportive treatment such as bed rest, fluids, analgesia, and fever reduction.
“Mumps is an acute viral infection caused by the rubulavirus, also known as mumps virus. It is sometimes called “infectious parotitis’ as it causes painful swelling of the parotid and salivary glands,” said Nthomeletsa.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), vaccine-preventable diseases monitoring system’s 2019 global summary, only two Southern African countries (eSwatini and Zambia) frequently reported cases of the mumps between 1999 and 2018, whereas South Africa only reported 24 cases in 2002. WHO says mumps reporting has been inconsistent and limited reports on mumps epidemiology in South Africa.
“Mumps is not a notifiable medical condition (NMC) and is not included in any formal surveillance programs. Since February 2023, the NICD has received a number of queries related to possible clusters or outbreaks of mumps in different provinces. To confirm the existence of an outbreak of mumps, national public sector laboratory test data for mumps PCR positives and IgM positives over the period 2013 to current, was requested from the NICD surveillance data warehouse and analysed as an ad hoc surveillance activity.”
The Guardian 