New Virus Causes ‘Severe Pneumonia,’ Health System Overwhelmed

United States: This flu season caused by Human metapneumovirus, commonly known as HMPV, has allegedly started a new medical season in China as there are a lot of patients complaining of flu-like illnesses, and most hospitals are filled to the brim.

More about the news

Users of the Chinese social media app Weibo say that they have been catching flu-like diseases in recent weeks, and Decoding China, in its video, made this comment, `current situation is worse than 2022, where the Covid Omicron variant was The basis of the Omicron variant severe restrictions across China that led to thousands of deaths.

Some posts that have made some time on the platform include one where patients between 50 and 60 years old test positive for the virus before developing pneumonia and getting admitted for treatment within three to five days, the-express.com reported.

About the disease

HMPV is a respiratory disease that tends to circulate more in various countries during some seasons, and like COVID-19, it produces symptoms such as congestion, fever, and cough that persist.

However, most people with HMPV have mild and non-serious symptoms, and although it is not known to be lethal, it can cause pneumonia, bronchitis, and other complications in hospitalized elderly and immunocompromised patients.

Weibo users have also shared a large number of worrisome graphics depicting Chinese hospitals filled with masked people, creating the impression that it is a Covid-like situation, the virus expanding across people and threatening the world.

Virus leads to ‘severe pneumonia in days’ as people claim ‘it’s worse than 2022’ https://t.co/wRFpzHSEDu @_atanas_

— Dr. Eddie Ramirez (@EddieRDMD) January 13, 2025

Chinese health officials have been hesitant to reveal how many people have gotten sick or died from the pathogen, claiming its case numbers are declining on Sunday based on a researcher at the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.

According to Wang Liping said, during a press briefing by China’s National Health Commission, “At present, the rate of positive cases in HMPV detection is fluctuating, and the rate of positive cases in northern provinces is declining,” the-express.com reported.

Claims of the problem being at a level similar to or worse than during the COVID-19 pandemic were also refuted by Gao Xinqiang, deputy director of the commission’s Department of Medical Emergency Response.

“There is no obvious shortage of medical resources,” he said while adding that rising illnesses across China were being caused by known pathogens rather than any new infectious viruses.

It was first noticed in the Netherlands in 2001 and is pretty much like flu for most people; it can pass from person to person through direct touch as well as through contact with objects contaminated with the pathogen.