CHARLESTON, S.C. — In letters to students, faculty and staff on Monday, Sept. 23, The College of Charleston reported an outbreak of mumps at the school. Three cases of the disease were diagnosed over the weekend of Sept. 21.
South Carolina's Department of Health and Environmental Control considers an outbreak to be three confirmed cases and the College is responding with campus-wide emergency protocols.
The letters state that because of the highly contagious nature of mumps, it is critical for all students, faculty and staff to get vaccinations immediately for mumps, measles and rubella (MMR) -- even those who may have already been vaccinated.
The College of Charleston is working with DHEC and the Medical University of South Carolina to provide vaccines on campus and suggests that employees at the school contact their primary care physicians, local urgent care facilities or local pharmacies for MMR vaccinations..
Students, faculty and staff exhibiting active symptoms of mumps -- swelling of one of more of the salivary glands, usually below and in front of the ear; headache; tiredness; sore throat; fever and chills -- are asked to self-isolate by staying home until the contagious period passes.
The virus is spread from person-to-person by coughing and sneezing and symptoms typically begin 14-18 days after exposure to the virus.
Mumps are caused by a virus, so antibiotics will not help. While infections in adults tend to produce severe disease, most people recover completely on their own.
The best treatment is rest, drinking plenty of fluids, and over-the-counter medications to reduce fever and headache.
The College states: "if a student who is not vaccinated and is not willing to be vaccinated and/or cannot provide the documentation of the proper MMR doses (which is a College requirement), he/she/they may need to leave campus immediately and stay away for at least 25 days from the last date of a reported positive case (and this date may change if new cases are diagnosed). Of course, the College recognizes the tremendous disruption that this may mean to some students and families, so the College is asking students to follow instructions so that their educational experience is not interrupted."