As many as five mumps cases have been detected among school students in Kom Ombo, Aswan, said Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health in Aswan, Magdy Hegazy on Tuesday. The necessary medical procedures were taken and the students were given a 15-day sick leave, Hegazy asserted. All precautionary measures particularly among school children have also been taken, he said, adding that all heath directorates nationwide are on highest alert to detect new cases. Mumps is a contagious disease caused by the mumps virus. It typically starts with a few days of fever, headache, muscle aches, tiredness, and loss of appetite, and is followed by swelling of salivary glands. Anyone who is not immune from either previous mumps infection or from vaccination can get mumps.