Northwest Iowa — Northwest Iowa, along with the rest of the state, and the nation, have been experiencing more cases of the mumps this year.
State Epidemiologist, Dr. Patricia Quinlisk, says the numbers are probably under-reported.
Doctor Quinlisk says that’s way above past years.
She says part of the increase is linked to college towns. She says it’s not surprising to see an increase in mumps in areas where there are colleges, because young adults’ mumps immunity from childhood shots is waning, and mumps spreads among those in close living conditions. Doctor Quinlisk says mumps outbreaks peak periodically — citing the year 2006 as an example — when Iowa reported two-thousand cases during a six-month period.
