Reply #14: My guess is that [View All]

[SheilaT]

the vaccine simply isn't as effective as the real thing. Which is a huge dilemma that's not really addressed, in my opinion. Yes, the real thing (and I'm talking any and all viral illnesses here) can be quite nasty and some are often fatal (like smallpox) but the immunity conferred is often permanent. Obviously, mass vaccinations are better than everyone getting the disease, now that we have vaccines available, but we're always going to face random outbreaks like this.

I have a son at K-State, and I haven't yet learned if they're having mumps out there.

Interestingly enough, my son (both of them actually) have an auto-immune disorder, alopecia areata, which causes hair loss. A side effect seems to be a hyper-active immune system, and they rarely get sick from anything at all. Just never get the usual colds or flus or other viral illnesses that normally make the rounds. So I rather expect even if there's an outbreak at his school, that he won't get the mumps. He did have his immunizations, which should also help.