The best way to prevent mumps is to have an MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine, a combined inoculation that contains the safest and most effective form of each vaccine. It is recommended that children receive a first dose of the MMR vaccine between 12 and 15 months of age and again between 4 and 6 years of age before entering school. Babies are usually immune to mumps for the first year of life because of the immunity acquired from their mothers during pregnancy.

The MMR vaccine provides protection against mumps and two other formerly common diseases of childhood, measles and rubella (German measles). The availability of the vaccine has greatly reduced the incidence of all three diseases.

Most people do not experience side effects from the vaccine. Some will develop a fever, mild rash, or swelling of the glands in the cheeks or neck between five and 12 days after the vaccination. Others develop fever-related seizures, a temporary low platelet count (a blood disorder) or joint pain and stiffness. There is also a small risk of severe allergic reaction associated with the vaccine. Though the connection has not been verified, the MMR vaccine may also be associated with deafness, long-term seizures, coma and permanent brain damage.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommendations for the MMR vaccine. People who do not need to get the vaccine include:

• Those who have had two doses of the MMR vaccine after age 1 or one dose of the MMR vaccine, plus a second dose of the measles vaccine.
  
  
• Those who have had blood tests that prove they are immune to mumps, measles and rubella.
  
  
• Men born before 1957.
  
  
• Women born before 1957 that do not plan to have any more children, already had the rubella vaccine or have had a positive rubella test.

Individuals should get a vaccine if they do not meet the above criteria and:

• Are nonpregnant women of childbearing age
• Attend college, trade school or postsecondary school
• Work in a hospital, medical facility, childcare center or school
• Plan to travel abroad or take a cruise

The vaccine is not recommended for the following:

• Pregnant women or those planning to get pregnant within the next month
  
  
• People who have experienced life-threatening allergic reactions to gelatin or the antibiotic neomycin, which are components of the vaccine
  
  
• People who have experienced a life-threatening allergic reaction to a previous dose of the MMR vaccine  

Individuals with cancer, blood disorders or other diseases that impact the immune system should consult a physician before getting the vaccine. People undergoing treatment with corticosteroids or other medications that affect the immune system should also talk with their physicians.

It was once commonly believed that people with egg allergies could not receive vaccines grown in chick embryos, such as the mumps vaccine; however, this is no longer true.

In recent years, some parents have refused to have their children vaccinated because of fears that the MMR vaccine can cause autism (lifelong developmental disability that affects brain function). The number of children diagnosed with autism has increased significantly in recent years, during the same time that the number of recommended childhood vaccines has increased.

The National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine reviewed safety concerns of the MMR vaccine at the request of the CDC and the National Institutes of Health. Their report concluded that the increase in autism cases cannot be linked to the MMR vaccine, although there is insufficient information to exclude the vaccine as a cause in rare circumstances. The CDC has not changed its recommendations that children should receive the MMR vaccine to prevent mumps.