Answer: Is acute mumps contagious?

Many people may not know where the parotid gland is. In fact, different places have different names for it. The parotid gland is actually a gland located in the center or next to the earlobe. Acute mumps is mostly caused by a viral infection of the parotid gland. Everyone should know that acute parotitis is contagious.

Mumps (epidemic parotitis, mumps) is an acute respiratory infectious disease caused by the mumps virus invading the parotid gland. It is a common respiratory infectious disease in children and adolescents. It also occurs in adults and is caused by the mumps virus. The prominent symptom is non-purulent swelling and pain of the parotid gland. The virus can invade various glandular tissues or the nervous system and almost all organs such as the liver, kidneys, heart, and joints. Therefore, it can often cause symptoms such as meningoencephalitis, orchitis, pancreatitis, mastitis, and oophoritis.

For mumps, the patient is the source of infection, inhalation of droplets is the main route of transmission, and the disease will occur 2-3 weeks after contact with the patient. The main symptom of mumps is swelling under one or both earlobes. The swollen parotid gland is often hemispherical, with unclear edges centered on the earlobe. The surface is hot and tender, and local pain is felt when opening the mouth or chewing. Parotid gland swelling is most obvious 1-3 days after onset, then gradually subsides, and the swelling completely disappears in about 2 weeks. In the first 3-5 days of the disease, there may be systemic symptoms such as fever, fatigue, and unwillingness to eat.

There are three pairs of salivary glands: the parotid glands, sublingual glands, and submandibular glands, with the largest pair being the parotid glands. When a child gets mumps, his face looks like a fat man with a swollen face. Because the parotid glands are located on both sides of the cheeks near the earlobes, the swollen parotid glands during mumps are centered on the earlobes and spread to the surrounding areas, so mumps is commonly known as "big mouth". In some places, there is also a saying of "pig head fat". Because sometimes the swelling is more serious and tends to be "pig head", people also have the habit of calling this symptom "pig head fat".

Mumps is an acute respiratory infectious disease caused by the mumps virus invading the parotid gland. The patient is the source of infection, and inhalation of droplets is the main route of transmission. The disease occurs 2-3 weeks after contact with the patient. The main symptom of mumps is swelling under one or both earlobes. The swollen parotid gland is often hemispherical, with unclear edges centered on the earlobe. The surface is hot and has angular pain, and local pain is felt when opening the mouth or chewing. Parotid gland swelling is most obvious 1-3 days after onset, then gradually subsides, and the swelling completely disappears in about 2 weeks. In the first 3-5 days of the disease, there may be systemic symptoms such as fever, fatigue, and unwillingness to eat.