HARRISONBURG, Va. -- James Madison University has postponed their next two men’s basketball games due to confirmed cases of mumps affecting the team.
JMU are postponing Thursday night’s game against North Carolina-Wilmington and Saturday’s game at Elon due to concerns for exposing mumps to opposing players.
The university said there is one confirmed case of mumps among the JMU coaching staff and another probable case to a coach who has since recovered.
There is also one possible case affecting a student-athlete. Testing to confirm a diagnosis has been initiated.
There are no suspected cases among the general student population, the university said.
As a precaution, all student-athletes and associated personnel related to both men’s and women’s JMU basketball programs have received MMR booster injections.
Rescheduled dates for the two postponed games has not been announced at this time.
Mumps is an acute viral infection transmitted person-to-person through direct contact with respiratory droplets spread by coughing and sneezing or contact with surfaces contaminated by those droplets. It is also spread through direct contact with saliva, such as by kissing or sharing drinks or lip balm.
Individuals infected with mumps develop symptoms 12 to 25 days after exposure. Symptoms of mumps include body aches, low-grade fever, loss of appetite, or headache, followed by tenderness and swelling in the jaw and/or cheek area. Men may develop testicular swelling. The majority of mumps infections are mild and individuals recover within a few days to a week; complications are uncommon, but can be severe.
Best practices for mumps prevention include:
- Wash hands well and often with soap;
- Don't share eating utensils or beverage containers;
- Surfaces that are frequently touched (doorknobs, tables, counters, etc.) should also be regularly cleaned with soap and water or with cleaning wipes;
- Limit your contact with people who have known mumps symptoms.
For more information about mumps, click here.
