Since the global Covid-19 crisis, respiratory diseases in China have come under close scrutiny. In recent weeks, images of Chinese hospitals invaded by masked people have circulated on social media, raising concerns about a new pandemic.
As our colleagues at TF1Info explain, most of these images are difficult to date and locate. However, US authorities have confirmed in the press an increase in Chinese cases of HPMV, a virus that can cause respiratory diseases such as bronchitis or pneumonia.
· US authorities warn, WHO calms down
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is the main public health agency in the United States, said on Monday, January 6, that it was “monitoring” an increase in cases of human metapneumovirus (HPMV) in northern China . Infections that reach a “pre-pandemic” stage, according to health authorities.
“CDC is aware of the increasing number of HMPV cases in China and is in regular contact with its international partners and monitoring reports of increased disease,” a spokesperson said in a statement cited by US media, including the policy. media The hill.
“These reports are not currently a cause for concern in the United States,” the spokesperson added.
Quoted by ABC News, a spokesperson for the World Health Organization (WHO) said that data from China indicates “there has been a recent increase in acute respiratory infections,” but that “the overall scale and intensity of infectious diseases respiratory infections in China this year are lower than last year.”
There is no alarm on the part of the Chinese authorities either. “Respiratory infections tend to peak during the winter season,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said on Friday, quoted by The Guardian.
“The diseases appear to be less severe and spread on a smaller scale than the previous year,” he added, without explicitly mentioning the HPMV virus.
· A respiratory virus with variable symptoms.
“Human metapneumovirus (HMPV) can cause upper and lower respiratory tract illness in people of all ages, especially young children, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems,” the US CDC website states.
The symptoms associated with this virus vary. These include cough, fever, nasal congestion, and difficulty breathing. “Clinical symptoms of HMPV infection can progress to bronchitis or pneumonia and are similar to those of other viruses that cause upper and lower respiratory tract infections,” the CDC’s fact sheet on the virus continues.
HMPV is transmitted by droplets emitted when coughing or sneezing, by “close personal contact,” or by touching your mouth, eyes, or nose after touching contaminated objects.
· A virus already present in the United States.
The HPMV virus, discovered in 2001 in the Netherlands, is nothing new. It already circulates in the United States from winter to spring, according to the CDC, and had already alerted American doctors last year.
In recent weeks, HPV cases in the United States have increased slightly, with 1.94% positive weekly tests in the months of November and December, according to CDC data cited by ABC News. However, these figures are still much lower than those for flu (18.71% of positive tests) and covid-19 (7.10%) during the same period.
According to a survey of the lancet Released in 2020, it is estimated that more than 14 million young children worldwide were infected with HMPV in 2018, with more than 600,000 hospitalizations and at least 16,000 deaths.
Source: BFM TV
