What are the dangers of mumps in children?

The reason why young children get mumps is generally believed to be related to the incomplete development of the parotid gland and the low local immune function of the parotid gland in childhood. The disease is not contagious, so no isolation treatment is required. Mumps is a contagious disease caused by a virus.

Treatment must be done in the hospital for antiviral treatment. However, this disease must be taken seriously. So let us understand what are the dangers of mumps in infants and young children?

Inflammation of the tissues adjacent to the parotid gland; symptoms include fever, leukocytosis, local redness, swelling, pain, and heat in the parotid gland. When the lesion enters the purulent stage, pus can be seen flowing out of the duct when the parotid gland is squeezed. Viral mumps is commonly known as epidemic parotitis and is more common.

There is a history of infectious contact in childhood or adolescence. The disease may be bilateral or unilateral. The white blood cell count does not increase but decreases or becomes normal. The local symptoms are similar to those of suppuration, but there is no tendency to suppuration.

Treatment of mumps: In the early stage of acute suppurative mumps, the main treatment is drug treatment, antibiotics, and the traditional Chinese medicine Jingfang Baidu Powder and Wuwei Xiaodu Yin; at the same time, the method of stimulating secretion is used to keep saliva secretion unobstructed. If the disease lasts for more than a week and enters the suppurative stage, an incision and drainage operation should be performed. There is no specific treatment for viral mumps. It can be treated with the aforementioned Chinese medicine. If there is a concurrent bacterial infection, antibiotics can be used.

The early symptoms of this disease are generally mild, manifested as moderately increased body temperature, headache, muscle aches, etc. Parotid gland enlargement is often the first sign of this disease, lasting 7-10 days. Usually one side of the parotid gland swells first, and the other side of the parotid gland also swells 2-3 days later. Sometimes the swelling is only on one side. The characteristic of parotid gland enlargement is that it is centered on the earlobe, expanding forward, backward, and downward, with unclear edges, elastic to the touch, painful and tender, the surface skin is not red, but may feel hot, and the pain worsens when opening the mouth, chewing, especially eating acidic foods. The swelling and pain reach a peak in 3-5 days and subside in about a week. There is often redness and swelling of the parotid duct opening. The pharynx and soft palate on the same side may be swollen, and the tonsils may shift toward the midline; laryngeal edema may also occur; edema may also occur in the upper chest, and red maculopapular rashes or urticaria may occasionally be seen on the trunk. Mumps brings great pain to children. The pain in the parotid gland is unbearable. In a few patients, the pancreas, meninges, brain, liver and heart will be damaged to varying degrees. The serious harm of this disease to the body is not just the parotid gland itself, but its complications. We should be highly vigilant and prevent and treat complications. Common complications include meningitis, orchitis and acute pancreatitis.

All of the above are the various hazards brought by mumps! Therefore, parents must pay enough attention to it and don’t ignore it thinking it is an unimportant minor illness, otherwise it will cause a more serious illness. Therefore, if you experience the above conditions, please go to the hospital to confirm what the condition is! Only then can the cause be identified and treated.