An HMPV outbreak is occurring in China, prompting concerns. However, authorities and experts emphasize that the situation is less severe compared to the COVID-19 pandemic. The virus shares similarities with COVID-19 in its transmission method but is not considered a major threat.
China is experiencing an HMPV outbreak, but Beijing has stated that respiratory infections are 'less severe' and 'smaller in scale' than last year. The Covid-19 pandemic was more severe than the HMPV virus outbreak, an expert explained today. Professor Jill Carr, a virologist, reassures that the outbreak of HMPV in China is not likely to cause another pandemic. The virus is similar to Covid in that it spreads through droplet particles in the air.
These can come from coughing, sneezing, or from being left on surfaces. HMPV symptoms include a cough, fever, and a blocked or runny nose. While social media photos from across China show crowded waiting rooms and hospital wards, Beijing urges that respiratory infections aren't as bad as the previous year. And Prof Carr, a virologist in the College of Medicine and Public Health at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, said: 'This is very different to the Covid-19 pandemic, where the virus was completely new in humans and arose from a spill-over from animals and spread to pandemic levels because there was no prior exposures or protective immunity in the community. 'The scientific community also has some understanding of the genetic diversity and epidemiology of HMPV, the kind of impact the virus has on the lungs and established laboratory testing methods - again, very different to the Covid-19 pandemic, where a new lung disease was seen, there was little information on how the virus may vary and spread and we had no initial diagnostic tests.' Experts around the world are keeping a close eye on the situation, as data from the UK shows a steep rise in HMPV cases in past weeks. Virus monitoring data from the UK Health Security Agency revealed that, as of December 23, ten per cent of children tested for respiratory infections in hospitals were found to be positive for HMPV. Medics assure that the virus poses no immediate threat, although cases have been recorded as far as Australi
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