Health Alerts

Japan: Mumps complications. A study conducted into the rate of mumps complications has shown that for the last 2 years a total of 261 individuals – 154 of them aged between 5 & 10 years – have suffered severe hearing loss as a consequence of the viral infection. Routine vaccinations to protect against mumps were ceased in Japan in the early 1990s and now with the release of this study, specialist ENT doctors are calling for its reintroduction into the childhood immunisation schedule. Read more

New Zealand: Mumps in Auckland, Dunedin. Young adults of Pacific Island origin make up almost two-thirds of the 300 mumps cases recorded in Auckland this year, with a further spread to Dunedin also reported. The spike in cases in Auckland means that this year cases have exceeded the sum total of the previous 16 years. Many of those infected were unvaccinated and the wider community is being urged to ensure they have received 2 doses of the MMR vaccine (provided free by the government). Read more on Auckland Dunedin 

USA: Hawaii mumps tops 300. Oahu has recorded the highest numbers of mumps cases in the ongoing outbreak, 277 of the 312 from across the state up to Aug 31. Other islands reporting cases are Kauai (26), Hawaii (8) and Maui (1). Read more