Mumps outbreak spurs calls for a new vaccine

Health experts say that an outbreak of mumps two years ago among college students occurred even though most of them had received a recommended vaccine. And a number of physicians have concluded that that failure underscores the need for a new vaccine. In the meantime, adding a third dose of the currently used vaccine may be the best way to head off any renewed outbreak.

The outbreak in the Midwest hit thousands of people--making it the worst in almost 20 years. And 84 percent of the patients who knew for sure whether they had been vaccinated had been vaccinated against mumps, according to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state health departments. Researchers believe that a new strain of mumps that originated in the U.K. was probably responsible for the outbreak. 

"It may be time to be developing a new vaccine," Pam Shaw, a pediatrician at the University of Kansas Medical Center, tells the Kansas City Star.

- read the report for more

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