200 unvaccinated students sent home from school amid mumps outbreak in Washington

Brian Zimmerman -

King County Public Health in Washington has advised Auburn School District to bar more than 200 unvaccinated students from attending school until 25 days have passed since a mumps case has been confirmed among the school population, according to a local NBC affiliate.

As of Dec. 7, there have been 44 potential mumps cases reported in King County, seven of which have been confirmed. Thirty-nine of the cases have occurred in Auburn.

The mumps are best known for painful, swollen salivary glands that cause puffy cheeks and swollen jaw. It is a highly communicable disease transmitted by person-to-person contact and is typically accompanied by initial symptoms such as fever, headache, muscle aches, tiredness and loss of appetite.

According to the CDC, two doses of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine are 88 percent effective at preventing the mumps.

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