In Focus by The Hindu Why are mumps cases spiking in India and can the vaccine help?
Nov 29, 2025
Dr. Vipin M. Vashishtha, a pediatrician and past National Convener of the Indian Academy of Pediatrics' Committee on Immunization, discusses the alarming rise in mumps cases across India. He explains how the absence of the mumps vaccine from the universal immunization program contributes to these outbreaks. Dr. Vashishtha highlights the viral illness's symptoms, potential complications, and the argument for adding the MMR vaccine to routine immunizations. He also emphasizes the need for booster shots and improved vaccine strategies to combat this public health challenge.
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Widespread But Underreported Mumps Burden
- Mumps circulates widely in India but is underdocumented due to uneven surveillance and reporting.
- Lack of national inclusion of the mumps vaccine (MMR) allows susceptible cohorts to accumulate and fuel outbreaks.
Why Outbreaks Keep Reappearing
- Multiple factors drive outbreaks: absence of mumps in UIP, waning vaccine immunity, and genotype mismatch.
- These create cycles of susceptibility, with older children and adolescents increasingly affected.
Mumps Infection And How It Spreads
- Mumps is an RNA virus with a 2–4 week incubation and often causes parotitis in 20–40% of cases.
- Many infections are subclinical and the virus has an R0 of about 4–7, so it spreads easily in congregate settings.