The Lake County Health Department announced a mumps outbreak at Barrington High School, but LZHS has nothing to worry about, according to Bessie Benrus, Health Aide.

“[If we hear of a case] we would notify everybody at the building,” Benrus said. “Any student that is not immunized would have to stay home for 21 days to make sure that the incubation period has passed and to make sure they have not contracted the disease.”

Mumps is a contagious disease caused by a virus, according to vaccines.gov. Most common symptoms include fever, headache, muscle aches, and swollen cheek glands. The best prevention, according to Dr. Susan Bleasdale, MD FACP and assistant professor of Infectious Disease at UIC, is to keep up with vaccines.

“Vaccination [is the best way to prevent diseases]. Vaccinations help to protect you individually and those who can’t get vaccines by preventing transmission,” Bleasdale said. “Sometimes there’s people who can’t get a vaccine because their immune system is compromised, like people with cancer. Those that get vaccines help to protect themselves and those that are vulnerable in the community as well.”

Due to recent criticism of vaccines, rates of mumps and measles have gone up in past years, according to Bleasdale. Although vaccines contain a “live virus that is broken down into parts or an inactivated part of the pathogen,” recipients of the vaccine do not develop the disease, instead, their body becomes immune to it after fighting off the injected dose.

“The idea of the vaccine is to get some sort of response,” Bleasdale said. “You want your body to fight off the vaccine and develop a memory from the vaccine so that when you’re exposed to the full infection, your body’s memory cells are able to fight off the infection.”

The Mumps, Measles, and Rubella (MMR) Vaccine is injected in two doses, the first between 12 and 15 months, the second between four and six years old. If children receive the vaccine, they “shouldn’t be at risk,” said Bleasdale. Waning of the vaccine, however, does occur for adults.

“Over time, the MMR vaccine will become less effective and people sometimes need to get boosted if there is risk in the community,” Bleasdale said.

As of March 21, no cases of mumps have been reported in District 95 schools, according to Benrus. Bleasdale said, other Lake County students are not in danger of contracting the disease if they are up to date with their vaccines.