HEALTH officials in Southampton were today battling to contain an outbreak of mumps among the city's student population.

Vaccination programmes have been hastily arranged at both the University of Southamp-ton and Southampton Institute for any students who have not already been immunised.

The exact number of mumps cases remained unclear but it was understood ten students at the university have already been struck down.

Southampton City Primary Care Trust said the number of cases locally and nationally was higher than normally expected for this time of year. However, Southampton has not been as badly hit as other parts of the country.

The trust, which has responsibility for GP surgeries in the area, is working closely with the university and institute to ensure students who have not had mumps, or have not already been immunised, can be vaccinated over the next few weeks.

Information and advice is also being issued to students and young people about possible symptoms and where to seek help.

A spokeswoman for Southampton City PCT said: "The people most vulnerable are those born before 1988, when the MMR became a routine vaccination. Individuals who did not receive at least two of the three MMR vaccinations are more vulnerable than those who did."

The situation in Southampton is being monitored by the Health Protection Agency, which last year recorded 75 cases of mumps across the south-east. More than half were among the 15 to 24 age group.

Mumps causes one or both of salivary glands to swell and become painful, creating the characteristic 'hamster' appearance of a swollen face. The swelling lasts for between four and eight days. Other symptoms may include pain when eating, sore throat, fever, loss of appetite, mild stomach pain and headache.