NEW DELHI: Amid HMPV scare in India, the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday said the Chinese authorities have confirmed that there are no “unusual outbreak patterns” and that the healthcare system is not overwhelmed due to the virus in the Asian country.
This has come at a time when eight HMPV (human metapneumovirus) cases have been reported in India. On Wednesday, a six-month-old girl was detected with HMPV in Mumbai – third case to be reported from Maharashtra. Other cases were reported from Karnataka (2), Tamil Nadu (2) and Gujarat (1).
Panic spread in India after unverified videos and photos of Chinese people thronging hospitals, wearing masks, reporting HMPV surfaced, reminding them of Covid-19, which was also first reported from China five years ago. However, WHO said they are in contact with Chinese health officials and have not received any reports of unusual outbreak patterns.
“Chinese authorities confirmed that the health care system is not overwhelmed, hospital utilisation is currently lower than this time last year, and there have been no emergency declarations or responses triggered,” WHO said.
“Based on the current risk assessment, WHO advises against any travel or trade restrictions related to current trends in acute respiratory infections,” it said.
Dr Margaret Harris from WHO said that HMPV is not a new virus. “It has an unusual name so there has been a lot of interest. But it is not a new virus. It was first identified in 2001, and it has been in the human population for a long time. It is a common virus that circulates in winter and spring. It usually causes respiratory symptoms similar to the common cold.”
China’s reported levels of respiratory infections are within the usual range. “Authorities say that hospital utilisation currently is lower than that of last year,” Dr Haris said.