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Background: Mumps deafness causes serious problems, and incidence data are needed to identify its disease burden. However, such data are limited, and the reported incidence is highly variable. Nationwide studies in Japan with a large age range are lacking.Methods: This was a retrospective observational investigation of the 2005–2017 mumps burden using employment-based health insurance claims data. Data were analyzed for 5,190,326 people aged 0–64 years to estimate the incidence of mumps deafness.Results: Of 68,112 patients with mumps (36,423 males; 31,689 females), 102 (48 males; 54 females) developed mumps deafness—an incidence of 15.0 per 10,000 patients (1 in 668 patients). Fifty-four (52.9%) patients had mumps deafness in childhood (0–15 years), and 48 (47.1%) had mumps deafness in adolescence and adulthood (16–64 years); most cases occurred in childhood, the peak period for mumps onset. The incidence of mumps deafness per 10,000 patients was 73.6 in adolescence and adulthood, 8.4 times higher than the incidence of 8.8 in childhood (P < 0.001). In childhood, the incidence of mumps deafness was 7.2 times higher among 6–15-year-olds (13.8; 95% CI, 10.2–18.2) than among 0–5-year-olds (1.9; 95% CI, 0.6–4.5), and this difference was statistically significant (P < 0.001). No sex difference was observed.Conclusions: The incidence of mumps deafness per 10,000 patients aged 0–64 years was 15.0 (1 in 668 patients). A secondary risk of deafness following mumps virus infection was identified not only for children, but also for adolescents and adults.

Mumps, a common childhood disease in the pre-vaccine era that causes swelling of the parotid salivary glands, can lead to orchitis, viral meningitis, and sensorineural deafness. While the incidence of disease decreased dramatically after the vaccine was added to standard vaccination schedules, the disease has made a substantial resurgence in recent years. As a result, it becomes critical to examine the factors involved in recurring outbreaks. Although low and incomplete vaccination coverage may be a key reason, it does not fully explain the issue due to the high rate of occurrence in populations with high vaccination coverage rates. Multiple studies suggest that waning immunity and secondary vaccine failure play a large role, the effects of which were previously masked by subclinical boosting. Significant knowledge gaps persist around the exact role and mechanism of waning immunity and demonstrate the need for more research in this area, as well as a reevaluation of mumps vaccine policy.

Mumps virus (MuV) is a single-stranded, negative-sense RNA virus of the Family Paramyxoviridae. MuV is a highly contagious human pathogen that causes primarily mild symptoms, including hallmark swelling of the parotid glands. Severe cases can occur, leading to neurological complications, including deafness, meningitis, and encephalitis. The mumps vaccine, now included in combination with measles and rubella vaccines (MMR), was first made available in the 1960s. After its introduction, mumps incidence dropped dramatically to less than 500 cases annually in the US. However, even with long-standing vaccination programs, MuV continues to challenge the landscape of public health due to a resurgence of cases in the past several decades and a still present lack of approved antiviral drugs and treatments available for the disease. This review will explore the biology of MuV, focusing on how MuV replicates and interacts with the host immune system. Recent studies have also shed light on the role of protein phosphorylation in regulating viral RNA synthesis—particularly the dynamic interactions between the nucleoprotein (NP) and phosphoprotein (P)—offering new insights into how the virus controls its replication machinery both mechanistically and through utilizing host cell advantages. We also examine how the immune system responds to mumps infection and vaccination, and how those responses may vary across viral genotypes. Although the Jeryl Lynn vaccine strain has played a key role in controlling mumps for decades, outbreaks among vaccinated individuals have raised questions about the present vaccine’s efficacy against circulating and emerging genotypes and if novel strategies will be required to prevent future outbreaks. We review current epidemiological data, highlighting shifts in MuV transmission and genotype distribution, and discuss the need for updated or genotype-matched vaccines. By connecting molecular virology with real-world trends in disease spread and vaccine performance, this review aims to support ongoing efforts to strengthen mumps control strategies and inform the development of next-generation vaccines.

For adult patients with single-sided deafness (SSD), treatment with a cochlear implant (CI) is well established as an acceptable and beneficial hearing rehabilitation method administered routinely in clinical practice. In contrast, for children with SSD, CI has been applied less often to date, with the rationale to decide either on a case-by-case basis or under the realm of clinical research. The aim of our clinical study was to evaluate the longitudinal benefits of CI for a group of children diagnosed with SSD and to compare their outcomes with respect to patient characteristics. Evaluating a pool of paediatric SSD patients presenting for possible CI surgery revealed that the primary aetiology of deafness was congenital cochlear nerve deficiency. A subgroup of children meeting the CI candidacy criteria for the affected ear (the majority with acquired hearing loss) were enrolled in the study. Preliminary group results suggest substantial improvements in speech comprehension in noise and in the ability to localise sound, which was demonstrated through objective and subjective assessments after CI treatment for the group, with results varying from patient to patient. Our study shows a trend towards superior outcomes for children with acquired hearing loss and a shorter duration of hearing loss compared to congenitally deafened children who had a longer duration of SSD. This indicates an interactive influence of the age at onset, aetiology and duration of deafness upon the restoration of binaural integration and the overall benefits of sound stimulation to two ears after CI treatment. Continued longitudinal investigation of these children and further studies in larger groups may provide more guidance on the optimal timing of treatment for paediatric patients with acquired and congenital SSD.

Background: Mumps vaccination coverage is low in Japan, partly because of its voluntary nature. Although pediatric cases of mumps virus infection are captured by the National Epidemiological Surveillance of Infectious Diseases program under the Infectious Disease Law, there are currently no data regarding the occurrence of mumps and its complications in adults.Methods: We investigated the annual incidence rates of mumps and its complications based on health insurance reimbursement data for 5,209,660 individuals aged 0–64 years for 2005–2017, obtained from JMDC Inc., to estimate the mumps-related disease burden during this period.Results: There were three mumps outbreaks (2006, 2010, and 2016) during 2005–2017. The annual incidence of mumps was highest in individuals aged 0–5 years (808–3,792 per 100,000 persons), followed by those aged 6–15 years (658–2,141 per 100,000 persons). The incidence of mumps was higher in females than in males (male/female ratio, 0.90). Among mumps-related complications, the overall incidence (per 1,000 mumps cases) was highest for orchitis (6.6), followed by meningitis (5.8), deafness (1.3), pancreatitis (0.5), and encephalitis (0.3). No cases of oophoritis were noted. The overall incidence of mumps-related complications was 2.5 times higher in males than in females.Conclusions: This study revealed the disease burden due to mumps and its complications in Japan during 2005–2017. These data suggest the need for mumps-prevention measures in adolescents and adults, as well as in children.

Mumps is an acute infectious disease caused by a paramyxovirus. Although the disease is usually mild, up to 10% of patients can develop aseptic meningitis; a less common but more serious complication is encephalitis, which can result in death or disability. Permanent deafness, orchitis, and pancreatitis are other untoward effects of mumps. Based on data reported to WHO up to April 1998, mumps vaccine is routinely used by national immunization programmes in 82 countries/areas: 23 (92%) of 25 developed countries, 19 (86%) of 22 countries with economies in transition (mainly the Newly Independent States of the former Soviet Union), and 40 (24%) of 168 developing countries. Countries that have achieved high coverage have shown a rapid decline in mumps morbidity. Furthermore, in many of these countries, mumps-associated encephalitis and deafness have nearly vanished. This review considers the disease burden due to mumps; summarizes studies on the immunogenicity, efficacy, and safety of different strains of mumps vaccine; and highlights lessons learned about implementing mumps immunization in different countries. Countries already using mumps vaccine should monitor immunization coverage and establish routine mumps surveillance with investigation of outbreaks. Where mumps is targeted for elimination, countries need to add a second dose of mumps vaccine for children, keeping in mind that the disease may still occur in susceptible adults.

Maternal rubella is now rare in many developed countries that have rubella vaccination programmes. However, in many developing countries congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) remains a major cause of developmental anomalies, particularly blindness and deafness. WHO have provided recommendations for prevention of CRS, and, encouragingly, the number of countries introducing rubella vaccination programmes has risen. However, declining uptake rates due to concerns about the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine in the UK, and increasing numbers of cases in some European countries coupled with poor uptake rates might jeopardise this progress. Surveillance of postnatally and congenitally acquired infection is an essential component of CRS prevention since rubella is difficult to diagnose on clinical grounds alone. Laboratory differentiation of rubella from other rash-causing infections, such as measles, parvovirus B19, human herpesvirus 6, and enteroviruses in developed countries, and various endemic arboviruses is essential. Reverse transcriptase PCR and sequencing for diagnosis and molecular epidemiological investigation and detection of rubella-specific IgG and IgM salivary antibody responses in oral fluid are now available.

To investigate the relationship between mumps and the extent of hearing impairment and otolith organ damage. A total of 27 patients with unilateral hearing impairment following mumps were enrolled. The degrees of hearing loss and otolith organ damage were confirmed by audiometric and vestibular evoked myogenic potential [VEMP] tests. All the results were compared and analyzed using Stata 13.0 software for Windows. The VEMP thresholds of the affected ears were significantly higher than those of the unaffected ears in both tests (cervical VEMP [cVEMP] test and ocular VEMP [oVEMP] test; p = 0.000 and 0.001, respectively). The mean cVEMP and oVEMP threshold values of the affected ears with hearing impairment for ≤10 years were significantly lower than those of affected ears with hearing impairment for >10 years [p = 0.009 and 0.004, respectively]. Deafness resulting from mumps is usually profound and permanent, which indicates severe damage to the cochlea due to the disease. The functions of otolith organs in the vestibular system are also impaired. Over time, the function of the otolith organs or their neural pathway may suffer secondary damage.