Mumps outbreak continues to affect communities

The mumps outbreak in Gauteng continues to affect children. Sasha Niemand said both her children had contracted mumps.

“Last Wednesday, my son complained about pain on the right side of his face when I dropped him off at preschool. “I initially thought he had hurt his neck while sleeping,” she said.

“It didn’t look swollen but when I picked him up that afternoon after school, the teacher said his face had started swelling after his afternoon nap.”

Niemand kept her son at home last Thursday and Friday and was relieved when the swelling went down at the weekend.

“On Sunday, when I fetched my daughter from her granny, she complained about pain on the left side of her face. “She didn’t sleep at all on Sunday night. On Monday, she said she was tired,” said Niemand.

Her daughter’s school called Niemand on Monday to fetch her – she also had the same symptoms as her brother.

“I’m lucky because they didn’t get that sick. “They were still full of energy and playful but were in pain,” said the mother.

ALSO READ: City of Tshwane on high alert amid mumps outbreak

Vaccinated

Niemand said she was grateful her children were vaccinated because they didn’t fall as ill as they might have if they hadn’t been.

Jomey Potgieter said she was worried about her daughter contracting mumps. “It’s everywhere now. The teacher sent out a letter on Monday about the symptoms of mumps,” she said.

Potgieter said she had never had mumps and didn’t know what to expect. “We haven’t heard of any infections yet, but at least my daughter is fully vaccinated,” she said.

Samantha de Jager said her eight-year-old daughter first got the mumps, followed by her seven-year-old son two weeks later.

“Now I am booked off with mumps at home. It’s horrible,” she said.

City of Tshwane’s MMC for Health Rina Marx said the city remained alert to an outbreak of mumps in Gauteng.

“Over the past few days, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases has confirmed an outbreak of mumps in South Africa.

“Three provinces, notably Gauteng, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal, have registered the majority of cases.

“From March 2023 to date, approximately 95 cases of mumps have been recorded at primary healthcare clinics managed by the City of Tshwane,” she said.

Marx said mumps was a viral infection caused by the rubulavirus and usually affected children between the ages of five and nine. “However, younger children, older children and adults can also contract the virus,” she added.

READ MORE: NICD confirms mumps outbreak in South Africa