The statewide mumps outbreak is over, according to the Arkansas Department of Health.
The 2,954 cases between August 2016 and this month were the second-largest outbreak of mumps in the state in three decades. The last case in the state was confirmed July 13. The Department of Health considers that rate of infection as a nonoutbreak level.
"Hallelujah," said Rick Schaeffer, communications director at Springdale Public Schools. "We're just glad it's over."
Springdale was at the center of the outbreak, which spread throughout the region. Some mumps cases within Springdale schools carried over into 2017, but not a substantial number, Schaeffer said. Most cases took place in fall 2016.
No new cases have been reported in the district this school year.
"We worked with dozens of employers, dozens of schools, hundreds of church and physicians around the state to be on the lookout and respond," said Dr. Dirk Haselow, an epidemiologist with the Department of Health. "It's very nice to dial it back to a normal level of vigilance."
The outbreak was highly unusual, Haselow said. The average annual number of mumps cases in Arkansas was less than six before 2016, he said.
Mumps causes swollen salivary glands, body aches and other mild to moderate symptoms. In rare cases it causes deafness and encephalitis, or brain inflammation, particularly in adults.
No fatalities were linked to the Arkansas outbreak, Haselow said.
"Thankfully mumps is not typically fatal," he said.
Before the development of the measles, mumps, rubella combination vaccine, mumps was the leading cause of encephalitis and male infertility.
A side-effect of the vaccine is mild rash, or in rare instances severe allergic reactions. Many parents in Arkansas chose not to vaccinate their children in fear of a severe allergic reaction or a link to other diseases such as multiple sclerosis, which has not been proved.
The vaccine remains the best protection against mumps, Haselow said. The Department of Health responded to the outbreak by closely monitoring vaccine compliance in schools and excluding the vaccine-exempt.
"Coverage is as high as it's ever been," Haselow said. "Because there are no active cases, those who chose no vaccine can go back to school and not worry about catching mumps."
Students who attended affected schools and weren't vaccinated against mumps were told to stay home until getting the vaccine or until 26 days had passed since the last case was found.
The majority of people who contracted mumps during the outbreak were vaccinated, which caused them to experience only mild disease, according to the Department of Health.
Mumps is no longer common in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A total of 4,400 cases were reported nationally this year, Haselow said, and 13 states continue to face outbreaks, including nearby Texas, Missouri and Oklahoma.
"Our policy is to recommend immunization against mumps, it is still very clearly helping majority of people and those who do get it," Haselow said.
State Desk on 09/09/2017