Mumps can be very serious, especially for teenagers and adults.
Permanent hearing loss can occur. More serious cases may result in inflammation of the brain and spinal cord. The disease spreads when germs pass in the air from an infected person's coughing to the nose or throat of others. Up to 13,000 cases of mumps have been reported each year. More than 85 percent of the cases develop before the age of 15 and most occur between the ages of 6 and 10 years.