The mumps outbreak has now made its way into the navy. A crew member of HMCS Glace Bay has been diagnosed with mumps.
As of Friday, May 25, 2007, 302 mumps cases have been confirmed in Nova Scotia. The mumps outbreak that involved mainly university students in the Halifax area is now being reported in other areas of the province and in New Brunswick.
With the diagnosis of mumps in one of the crew members of the HMCS Glace Bay, most of the remaining crew has been sent home on sick leave to prevent further spread of the mumps virus. Mumps is one of the vaccines received by Canadian Forces members so the risk of contracting mumps in the military is low; however, Canadian Forces erred on the side of caution with respect to the finding of mumps in one of its members. Up to 10% of people who are immunized with 2 doses of mumps vaccine, and up to 20% of people immunized with only one dose of mumps vaccine will not develop immunity.
Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia medical officer of health indicated this week that the province is considering offering mumps vaccine to Nova Scotia university students in the fall, in an effort to prevent further mumps outbreaks. People born between 1970 and 1992 are more likely to lack immunity to mumps, because between those years a single dose of mumps, measles, rubella (MMR) vaccine was provided rather than the recommended double dose.
The Department of Health is providing MMR vaccine to Nova Scotia's approximately 40,000 healthcare workers. Although mumps has been reported in only a few healthcare workers, many more have had to stay off work due to exposure to patients and clients infected with the mumps virus.
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