Parents in the Cleburne Independent School District are being cautioned after two cases of mumps were confirmed in the district.
District leaders were notified by regional health officials late Wednesday that a student at Cleburne High School and one at neighboring Wheat Middle School had gotten sick with the rare illness.
Parents were notified by email that night and district Director of Community Relations Lisa Magers said a note was sent home Thursday with students as well.
The notices made families aware of the signs and symptoms of mumps and also gave information about prevention of the illness that, to many, has been off the radar in recent years.
"Due to immunizations and other things it's kind of like, in very few cases do you hear much of it anymore. So, yes, this it kind of a new wrinkle," said Magers.
Notification of Cleburne's cases came just hours after families in nearby Keene were put on notice. That school district has seven confirmed cases among students.
"Some of these students have traveled to Arkansas, and so there may be an Arkansas connection as well," said Dr. Elvin Adams, with the Johnson County Health Authority.
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Mumps can be spread through the air from coughs and sneezes, and it is highly contagious. Symptoms include swollen salivary glands below the ears, fever, headache, muscle aches, fatigue and loss of appetite, the Texas Department of State Health Services says on its website.
There is no treatment for mumps, and the illness can take up to 25 days for symptoms to appear.
The MMR vaccine, which also protects against measles and rubella, is the best way to protect yourself from mumps, officials said.
As an extra precaution, both Cleburne and Keene school leaders said their custodians are deep cleaning the schools with industrial-grade disinfectants to help prevent further spread of the illness.
Dallas County also confirms four adult cases of the illness there.
