Mumps

At a glance

Vaccine preventable – check who’s eligible
Vaccine included on the National Immunisation Program – check who’s eligible
Nationally notifiable disease

About mumps

Mumps is a highly contagious viral illness. The virus commonly infects the salivary glands.

Vaccination is the best prevention.

Why it matters to public health

Most people with mumps recover within 2 weeks. But some develop serious complications.

The virus spreads easily between people. Before the introduction of mumps vaccination in Australia, mumps was very common in childhood and outbreaks occurred every few years.

Mumps is now rare in Australia but is still common in many other countries. People can bring mumps into Australia from overseas.

Because of these impacts, we:

monitor and report on mumps infections in Australia
plan for and provide guidance on managing outbreaks.

Symptoms

If you’re looking for advice about your own health or treatment options, see healthdirect or speak with a qualified healthcare professional. Our role is to provide public health advice – information and guidance that helps prevent disease, protect communities and improve wellbeing at a population level.

About 1 in 3 people with mumps have no symptoms. Early symptoms can be similar to the flu, and can include:

fever
headache
tiredness
body aches
loss of appetite.

In people with mumps who develop symptoms, about 2 in 3 will get painful swelling on one or both sides of the face.

More serious complications of mumps can include:

inflammation of the testicles (orchitis) – which occasionally affects fertility
inflammation of the brain (encephalitis) or lining of the brain (meningitis)
hearing loss – which may be temporary or permanent
inflammation of the ovaries and breast tissue
miscarriage, if infection happens early in pregnancy.

Read more about the symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of mumps.

healthdirect’s symptom checker can help you decide whether to see a health professional.

Check your symptoms

Onset of symptoms

Symptoms, if present, usually start 2 to 3 weeks after infection.

How it spreads

Mumps mainly spreads through:

respiratory droplets – when you cough, sneeze, speak or sing, these droplets spread through the air and can be breathed in by other people
saliva (including kissing or sharing drinks).

Infectious period

People with mumps are most infectious from about 2 days before to 5 days after their symptoms begin.

People without symptoms can also spread the virus.

Prevention

Vaccination

Get vaccinated

Vaccination is the best protection against mumps. High vaccination coverage helps limit the size, duration and spread of mumps outbreaks.

The mumps vaccine is given in a combination vaccine for measles, rubella and sometimes chickenpox.

Vaccination is recommended for:

children aged 12 months or older
adolescents
adults born after 1965 who have not had 2 vaccine doses.

People who can become pregnant and are not immune to mumps should be vaccinated before pregnancy.

Eligible people can get mumps-containing vaccines for free under the National Immunisation Program or state or territory programs. If you are not eligible for a free vaccine, you can buy one from your healthcare professional or pharmacy.

Mumps vaccination should not be given:

during pregnancy
to people who are severely immunocompromised.

Other prevention steps

People with mumps should follow the advice of their healthcare professional or public health unit. This may include advice to isolate at home and avoid contact with people who aren’t immune to mumps.

Priority groups and settings

Some people are at greater risk of getting mumps or getting very sick from it.

If you are at greater risk of severe disease, it is especially important to take steps to protect yourself.

People at greater risk of severe disease

Mumps poses a greater risk of severe illness for:

people who are unvaccinated
people who are immunocompromised
people infected after puberty.

People at greater risk of exposure

People might be more likely to be exposed to mumps if they travel to parts of the world where mumps is still common.

Mumps can spread more easily in settings where people are in close contact, including:

schools
student accommodation
military barracks
early childhood education and care centres
residential care facilities
correctional and detention facilities.

Diagnosis and treatment

If you think you or someone you care for might have mumps, call ahead before visiting your healthcare professional. They might take extra steps to protect others.

Healthcare professionals can diagnose mumps through:

an inner cheek and mouth swab
a blood test.

You can use healthdirect’s directory to find a health service near you.

Find a health service

There is no specific treatment for mumps. Most people with mumps recover on their own without treatment.

Read more about how to manage or treat mumps.

Surveillance and reporting

Mumps is a nationally notifiable disease – these are diseases that present a risk to public health.

Health authorities in each state and territory report new laboratory confirmed or probable cases to us daily through the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System.

This is part of our surveillance activities, which help us monitor case numbers around the country and understand disease patterns.

We analyse the data and report on case numbers and other data through our data visualisation tool, where you can filter and search the latest information.

Outbreaks

How public health agencies respond to mumps outbreaks depends on:

state or territory laws and reporting requirements
the nature of the outbreak
what resources are available.

During a mumps outbreak, public health authorities might:

make sure people who aren’t fully vaccinated get vaccinated
offer an extra vaccine dose to people who have already had 2 doses, as this can help reduce the risk of infection
ask people who are not immune to stay away from settings at greater risk until they are vaccinated.

Read more about how the Australian Government defines and plans for outbreaks.

Support

For information about mumps in your state or territory, see:

If you need mental health support, see a list of organisations, websites and services that offer support, counselling and information.