.

Yikes!!!

So I've been hearing about this like every night on the news for sometime. There's been some mumps epidemic around here. Iowa really has it, and it has spread. I live right outside of Kansas City, Missouri, literally, the city line is just a few blocks away from my house; and there are many cases in my city and county, Clay county. It's also been spread through our City Hall, which is also very close, easy walking distance. I've seen pictures that they've shown on the news. Kinda scary.

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/stlouiscitycounty/story/C3AE1E08F376626D8625715C00636589?OpenDocument
Mumps cases continue to climb in bi-state area
By Deborah L. Shelton
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
04/26/2006

The number of mumps cases continues to climb in Missouri and Illinois.

As of Wednesday, Missouri had 53 cases statewide, including probable cases in St. Louis and the counties of St. Charles, Washington and Franklin.

As of Tuesday, Illinois had 157 cases statewide, including two cases in Madison county.

The mumps epidemic began in December in Iowa and has mushroomed to more than 1,000 confirmed, suspected and probable cases in that state. Iowa health officials usually see 5 to 10 cases a year.

The outbreak has spilled into neighboring states, with more than 1,720 confirmed and suspected cases reported in eight states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The U.S. typically sees 200 to 300 cases a year.

Federal health officials said last week that the outbreak is the nation’s largest in almost two decades and is expected to keep growing.

Iowa officials have launched a vaccination campaign in an effort to contain the disease.

Mumps is a viral infection spread by sneezing, coughing and sharing cups or other objects that have been in contact with saliva. Symptoms can include fever, weakness, headache, muscle pain and swelling of glands close to the jaw. About 20 percent of cases don’t show symptoms.

Complications can include deafness, swelling of the brain and swelling of the ovaries in women and testes in men.

A vaccine introduced in 1967 is about 95 percent effective.
You live in Clay Co? Cool...we drive thru there a lot to go to KC.

Anyway....yeah, here in IA I think it's the worst in the nation. Which I guess I find hard to believe, because when I was a baby, I was immunized against the mumps (the MMR shots). I would assume most babies born around that time and certainly after would be immune...which includes today's college kids, who would be mid to late 80s babies. Maybe this state is full of dumbass hicks...