A recent notification from the Arizona Health Alert Network indicates there have been four confirmed cases of mumps in Arizona over the past month. Nationally, there has been a dramatic increase in reported mumps, with four states reporting recent outbreaks. There were 5,700 cases in 2016, and already 2,000 in 2017.
Mumps can cause pain, tenderness, and swelling of one or both parotid salivary glands as well as other complications including:
Orchitis
Oophoritis
Encephalitis
Meningitis
Deafness
Providers should report suspect mumps cases to the local health department as well as collect specimens for testing, including:
Buccal swab
Urine
Serum
It's important to ensure your patients are fully vaccinated against mumps. To report cases or for additional information, please contact your local health department at
azhealth.gov/localhealth.
As always, don't hesitate to contact your
Mercy Care or your
Mercy Maricopa Provider Relations Representative with any questions or comments. You can find this notice and all other provider notices on our
Mercy Care Plan or
Mercy Maricopa website.
