Mumps Mumps is caused by a virus. It usually causes painful swelling of the glands that lie just above the back angle of the jaw, but other glands may be affected. It can cause fever, headache and mild respiratory symptoms. After puberty, mumps can cause swollen testes or ovaries. Rarely, mumps causes deafness.
Mumps is transmitted through the air or by direct contact with the saliva of an infected person.
Many people with a mumps virus infection may have only mild symptoms that may resemble a cold. Symptoms of mumps generally last from one week to 10 days. The wild polio virus has been eliminated in North and South America but not elsewhere in the world, which means all children should continue to be immunized against it. Polio is a viral infection transmitted by fecal-oral contact. Milder cases may last only a few days, causing fever, sore throat, stomachache and headache.