In a notice Wednesday from State University of New York (SUNY) at New Paltz Director of Student Health Services, Jack Ordway, M.D., nine mumps cases have been confirmed on campus.

Mumps/CDC
Mumps/CDC

Local media report the cases are members of the school’s intercollegiate swimming program.

Mumps is an acute viral infection of the salivary glands. Symptoms include swelling and tenderness of the cheeks, usually preceded by fever, headache and muscle aches. Mumps infection can also lead to more serious health complications such as testicular infection and inflammation, meningitis, and encephalitis (inflammation of the brain).

Transmission occurs through sneezing, coughing, contact with saliva (through sharing of utensils, towels, kissing, sharing cigarettes and drinks, etc.), or from contact with surfaces that have become contaminated with the mumps virus. The incubation period is 16–18 days, and individuals are considered most infectious from 2 days prior through 5 days after the onset of symptoms.

Mumps is becoming increasingly more common on college campuses in the United States. The disease has been reported on multiple college campuses in 2016 including the State University of New York at Buffalo,Indiana University, University of Kentucky, University of San Diego, University of Southern Maine, Saint Anselm College in New Hampshire and Harvard University, among others.

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