The incidence of human influenza-like metapneumovirus (HMPV) in northern China is declining, a health official said on Sunday amid international concern over a possible pandemic. This is reported by the Associated Press, UNN reports.
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"At present, the number of positive cases in human metapneumovirus detection is fluctuating, with the number of positive cases decreasing in the northern provinces, and the number of positive cases among patients aged 14 years and younger has begun to decline," said Wang Liping, a researcher at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
He pointed out that metapneumovirus is not a new virus, it has been present in humans for several decades. According to him, the increase in recent years in the number of cases of this virus, first detected in the Netherlands in 2001, is due to improved detection methods.
Concerns have been raised in recent days about a surge in HMPV infections in northern China after images of hospitals crowded with masked patients circulated online. The World Health Organization said it has not received reports of unusual outbreaks in China or other countries.
HMPV causes flu or cold-like symptoms, including fever, cough, and nasal congestion. Symptoms often go away on their own, but it can cause lower respiratory tract infections in children, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems.
Experts say that HMPV differs from COVID-19 in that it has been around for decades and there is some built-in immunity to it. Most children become infected with this virus before the age of five.
WHO assures that metapneumovirus from China is not a threat08.01.25, 06:37