HMPV is not a new virus: it was discovered in the Netherlands in 2001. Symptoms of the disease, which belongs to the same family as RSV, include cough, fever, sore throat, nasal congestion and shortness of breath. In severe cases, the infection may progress to bronchitis or pneumonia, especially in children, the elderly, and those with weakened immune systems. There is currently no vaccine against HMPV.
The Chinese Center for Disease Prevention and Control said late last year that hospitals were seeing an increasing trend in the positive rate of HMPV in children under 4 years old, especially in northern provinces , as well as an increase in cases of RSV and influenza. Three cases of HMPV have also been detected in India.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) also reported last week that HMPV rates “increased slightly” to 4.5%, with the highest positivity rates recorded in under-5s.
On the fifth anniversary of the Covid-19 pandemic, concerns are growing about the dangerous nature of the virus. But experts believe that a seasonal increase in respiratory infections should be expected.
“[HMPV] has probably been causing infections in humans for much longer, but it needed the right technology to detect it,” Senanayake said. “At this point, it is likely that China will experience a bad HMPV season, in the same way that some years we experience an overwhelming flu season. »
Jill Carr, a virologist at the College of Medicine and Public Health at Flinders University, Australia, said the situation is “very different from the Covid-19 pandemic, where the virus was completely new in humans and resulted from the spread of animals”. and spread at pandemic levels because there was no prior exposure or protective immunity in the community.
Public health experts encourage people to follow the same precautions as for other respiratory infections, including staying home when sick, washing their hands and wearing a mask in public.
Related News :