Debating society cancels events due to mumps outbreak

This is the second outbreak this academic year

facebook health mumps virus

A member of The St Andrews Union Debating Society has been diagnosed with mumps. They announced this on their Facebook page and said events have been cancelled to prevent the spread of infection.

A statement from the society says:

“On Monday, a member of committee was diagnosed with mumps. According to the CDC the infectious period for mumps is between 2 days before and 5 days after onset. In the time before onset 8 members of board were within three feet of that committee member for a sustained time, which according to the CDC is considered an unprotected exposure.

Given that the MMR vaccine is not 100% effective, we would prefer to cancel events rather than put attendees at risk. In addition, as the WHO is currently recommending social distancing to deal with current concerns like the mumps and COVID-19, we believe it would be in our members’ best interests to cancel this week’s activities.”

The University Press Office, appears to think there isn’t anything major to worry out as it happens every year.

A University of St Andrews spokesman said: “Every year there are cases of mumps reported. At present we are aware of a small number of cases and are following Fife public health advice.”

For more information about mumps and symptoms to look out for, you can read NHS guidelines here.