Prevention & Control of Mumps in Healthcare Settings of this
page: Mumps transmission has occurred in past outbreaks
involving hospitals and long-term care facilities housing
adolescents and adults. Mumps is transmitted by contact with
virus-containing respiratory secretions, including saliva; the
portals of entry are the nose and mouth. The incubation period
varies from 12 to 25 days and is usually 16 to 18 days. In
unvaccinated persons, unilateral or bilateral parotitis occurs
in approximately half of patients infected with mumps; 15-20%
are asymptomatically infected and the remainder have
nonspecific, flu-like symptoms without parotitis. Although the
virus has been isolated from saliva from 2 to 7 days before
parotitis and may persist for as long as 9 days after onset of
disease, the maximum infectious period is considered to be from
3 days before to 5 days after symptom onset. While transmission
of mumps in healthcare settings has been rarely reported, during
community outbreaks, unprotected exposure of h