If your child has the mumps, be alert for signs that a secondary infection may be developing. If symptoms seem to get worse, or if new symptoms develop, seek medical treatment.

Prevention
As much as possible, try to keep your child from contact with contagious children.

A vaccine that protects against mumps is available, usually given in the form of a combination vaccine that also protects against measles and rubella (the MMR vaccine). Doctors recommend that this vaccine, which is given by injection, be administered when a child is approximately fifteen months old, and that an additional dose be given later, when a child is either four to six years old (before entering school) or between eleven and thirteen years old (in middle school or junior high school). (See IMMUNIZATION-RELATED PROBLEMS.)

From Smart Medicine for a Healthier Child by Janet Zand, N.D., L.Ac., Robert Rountree, MD, Rachel Walton, RN, ©1994. Published by Avery Publishing, New York. For personal use only; neither the digital nor printed copy may be copied or sold. Reproduced by permission.