MBBS OSCE · General Medicine
OSCE — Mumps (Epidemic Parotitis)
Eight-minute OSCE station on Mumps (Epidemic Parotitis): focused history, examination priorities, investigations, emergency and definitive management.
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Brief (to candidate)
You will assess a patient with a presentation consistent with Mumps (Epidemic Parotitis).
You have 8 minutes to take a focused history, outline examination, investigations, and management including red flags.
Clinical context
Mumps (epidemic parotitis) is an acute, vaccine-preventable, self-limiting viral infection caused by the mumps virus — a Rubulavirus within the Paramyxoviridae (enveloped, non-segmented, negative-sense single-stranded RNA) — transmitted by respiratory droplets and saliva. The cardinal feature is nonsuppurative, painful parotid swelling (parotitis) that lifts the ear lobe and obliterates the jaw angle (bilateral in 70 percent), accompanied by fever and malaise. After a 16 to 18 day incubation, illness lasts 7 to 10 days. The clinical importance of mumps lies less in the parotitis than in its complications — orchitis/oophoritis (post-pubertal), aseptic meningitis/meningoencephalitis, pancreati
Candidate tasks
- Clarify onset, severity, associated features, and red-flag symptoms.
- State focused examination priorities.
- List first-line investigations and any named score/criteria.
- Give immediate resuscitation steps.
- Outline definitive management with doses/routes where standard.
- Name complications and disposition (ward / HDU / theatre / discharge safety-net).
- Mention one special-population modifier (pregnancy, child, elderly, CKD).
Examiner checklist
| Domain | Pass behaviours |
|---|---|
| Definition | Correct working diagnosis language |
| Assessment | Focused, prioritised, red flags sought |
| Investigations | Appropriate first-line + interpretation |
| Emergency care | ABC / time-critical actions first |
| Definitive care | Specific drugs/procedures, not generic phrases |
| Safety | Fever with painful parotid swelling (lifts ear lobe, obscures jaw angle; often b |
| Safety | Post-pubertal male with acute scrotum during mumps - exclude testicular TORSION |
| Safety | Mumps with severe headache, neck stiffness, photophobia or altered mental status |
| Communication | Clear plan and safety-netting |
Model outline
Lead with the working diagnosis and life threats. Resuscitate before definitive tests when unstable. Use guideline-standard therapy with named agents and doses. Document escalation criteria and follow-up. A safe candidate is specific, structured, and never delays critical care for non-urgent imaging.