DES MOINES – The number of mumps cases in Iowa jumped more than 200 in the past week, with state health officials saying Tuesday the rise is a combination of new cases and a logjam of paperwork from cases that had yet to be tallied.

Kevin Teale, a spokesman for the Iowa Department of Public Health, said that 210 new cases of mumps have been reported since last Thursday, bringing the total number of cases to 815.

Not only has the number of mumps cases jumped, the disease also is being reported in more counties.

As of Tuesday, 67 counties had reported cases of the mumps, up from 60 last week.

Teale said that the reason for the jump in the number of mumps cases during the past five days – the largest leap yet in Iowa’s current outbreak – is split between new cases and previously reported ones that had yet to be put into the state’s database.

The logjam has been caused by the sheer volume of cases reported over the past few weeks, Teale said.

Officials have had the most trouble processing paperwork in Dubuque county, which has reported the most cases statewide. The number of reported instances of mumps in Dubuque jumped from 187 to 323 in the past week, an increase Teale credits largely to backlogged cases.

Teale said that the latest data has yet to reveal any particular trends about how the illness is spreading.

“It’s just a higher number, and obviously that concerns us,” Teale said.

State health officials released a public health bulletin last Friday, warning organizers of mass gatherings, such as next week’s Drake Relays, that participants and spectators at such events face a “slight, but real risk of being exposed to the mumps virus.”

The bulletin did not recommend canceling such high-traffic events, but it said organizers would be wise to provide mumps education to attendees.

“I don’t think it’s a high risk, but it’s enough of a risk that it’s prudent to warn people,” said Dr. Patricia Quinlisk, state epidemiologist.

State officials recommend that Iowans should cover their mouths when they sneeze, wash their hands regularly and refrain from sharing utensils and beverage containers in order to reduce the risk of being in contact with the virus that causes mumps.