Mumps Detected on NIU Campus

DeKalb County health officials have confirmed that a student has a case of the mumps at Northern Illinois University. What does that mean?

There has been a rash of mumps in Illinois and now there is a case at NIU in DeKalb.

Sources report to the DeKalb Daily Chronicle that a notice was sent to students, faculty and staff by email. University officials say they're working with the DeKalb County Health Department and the Illinois Department of Public Health to provide more information to students and the community.

There have been reports of mumps at the University of Illinois' Urbana-Champaign campus, where more than 100 cases have been confirmed. Two cases were confirmed last month at Eastern Illinois University. Now NIU has a case to add to the tally.

Having mumps is not as common in America. The number of cases ranges from a couple hundred to as many as a couple thousand a year.

What should you look for to determine if you have a case of the mumps? Symptoms include fever, headache, tiredness and swollen salivary glands under the ears.

If sick, stay at home and go see the Doctor.