The History of the Mumps

Mumps is an illness that causes severe swelling of the salivary glands, and in some cases the
testicles. The disease has been a nuisance since ancient times, and grew to epidemic
proportions in the 18th and 19th centuries. Vaccines are available to treat the disease, but many
physicians have cast doubt as to their efficacy.
Ancient References

Mumps is first described in the writings of the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates, who
wrote during the 5th century B.C. He described the symptoms of the disease, namely the
swelling of the face and the throat, as well as the swelling of the testicles that affects some men
who develop the illness.
18th to 20th Century

Epidemics of the mumps occurred during the 18th and 19th centuries. The outbreaks
occurred worldwide, often in close quarters, such as military barracks, boarding schools, ships at
sea and prisons. In World War I, mumps was the leading cause of French troops missing active
duty. It wasn't until 1934 when Drs. Johnson and Goodpasture proved that the mumps was
caused by a virus, which the doctors isolated from saliva samples.
Mumps Vaccine

There are three major mumps vaccines that were developed in the 20th century: Rubini,
Jeryl-Lynn and Urabe. Of these, only the Jeryl Lynn is in use in the United States today. The Jeryl
Lynn vaccine was developed in the 1960's and licensed in 1967.
Combination Vaccine

The combination vaccine called the Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR) vaccine was

developed in 1971, and became routinely used by 1977. However, it wasn't until the 1990s that
American schools began to require that all students get the MMR vaccine.
Concerns About Effectiveness of Vaccine

Many concerns have been raised about the effectiveness of the mumps/MMR vaccine in
recent years. During a 2006 outbreak of the disease in California, many who had been
vaccinated still became ill. It was the worst outbreak in the United States in two decades. Across

the pond, British physicians also agree that the vaccine may not be the most effective. Outbreaks
of the disease have occurred with some regularity since the late 1990s in communities in
Northern Ireland and the northern parts of England.

History of Measles
Throughout the history of measles, the disease was an expected life event. References to
measles can be found as far back as the 7th century A.D. The history of measles changed
dramatically when the vaccine became available and the number of measles cases dropped by
99 percent.
References to measles can be found as far back as the 7th century A.D. In fact, measles was
described by Rhazes (Persian philosopher and physician) in the 10th century A.D. as "more
dreaded thansmallpox." But all that changed in 1963, when the measles vaccine was first
licensed in the United States.

History of Measles and the Impact of the Measles Vaccine

Prior to 1963, almost everyone got measles; it was an expected life event. Each year in the
United States, there were approximately three to four million cases, and an average of 450
deaths. Epidemic cycles occurred every two to three years. More than half the population had
measles by the time they were six years old, and 90 percent had the disease by the time they
were 15 years old. However, after the measles vaccine became available, the number of
measles cases dropped by 99 percent, and the epidemic cycles diminished drastically.

History of Measles and the Second Measles Vaccine Dose

Between 1985 and 1988, it was discovered that many measles cases had occurred in children
who had been vaccinated with the measles vaccine. While there were far fewer measles cases
among vaccinated children than among unvaccinated children, the children who received only
one dose were not always protected from the disease. This led to the recommendation of a
second dose for children between 5 and 19 years of age, to ensure protection for those who had
not developed immunity from the first dose.
History of Measles and the 1989-1990 Measles Epidemic
A dramatic increase in measles cases occurred between 1989 and 1991. During those three
years, 55,622 cases were reported. Most of the cases occurred in children under five years of
age, with the number of cases among unvaccinated Hispanic and African American populations
being four to seven times higher than among non-Hispanic whites. This also marked the first time
that the number of measles cases for children under five years of age exceeded that of the group
from 5 to 19 years old.

During this period, 123 people died from measles-related illnesses, and almost half were under
five years old. Ninety percent of those who lost their lives had not been vaccinated. There were
64 deaths reported in 1990; this was the largest number that had been seen in almost 20 years.

History of Measles and Measles Outbreaks in Recent Years

Since 1993, the largest outbreaks of measles have occurred in populations that refuse
vaccination, including communities in Utah and Nevada, and in Christian Scientist schools in
Missouri and Illinois. Smaller outbreaks were reported in unvaccinated preschool populations,
vaccinated school populations, among college students, and in adult communities, but these
outbreaks were much smaller than those reported between 1989 and 1991. In recent years,
outbreaks of measles have been small (fewer than 50 cases), and have chiefly involved high
school and college students who are unvaccinated, or have received only one dose of measles
vaccination. No large preschool-type outbreak has been reported since 1992.

History of Measles and the Source of Today's Measles Cases

In March of 2000, a group of expert consultants gathered by the Center for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) concluded that measles is no longer endemic in the United States. Rather, all
cases in the United States appear to be the result of importations, with limited domestic spread.
This means that the only measles cases we see in the United States today have been brought in
from other countries, usually Europe and Asia. Due to an aggressive measles vaccination
program by the Pan American Health Organization, measles incidence is now very low in Latin
America and the Caribbean. Eliminating measles from the Americas appears to be an achievable
goal.

History of Chicken Pox

One history of medicine book credits Giovanni Filippo (15101580) of Palermo with the first
description of varicella (chickenpox). Subsequently in the 1600s, an English physician named
Richard Morton described what he thought a mild form of smallpox as "chicken pox." Later, in
1767, a physician named William Heberden, also from England, was the first physician to clearly
demonstrate that chickenpox was different from smallpox. However, it is believed the name
chickenpox was commonly used in earlier centuries before doctors identified the disease.
There are many explanations offered for the origin of the name "chickenpox:"

Samuel Johnson suggested that the disease was "no very great danger," thus a
"chicken" version of the pox;

the specks that appear looked as though the skin was pecked by chickens;

the disease was named after chick peas, from a supposed similarity in size of the
seed to the lesions;

the term reflects a corruption of the Old English word giccin, which meant "itching."

As "pox" also means curse, in medieval times some believed it was a plague brought on to curse
children by the use of black magic.
From ancient times, neem has been used by people in India to alleviate the external symptoms
of itching and to minimize scarring. Neem baths (neem leaves and a dash of turmeric powder in
water) are commonly given for the duration.
During the medieval era, oatmeal was discovered to soothe the sores, and oatmeal baths are
today still commonly given to relieve itching.