Micah McCartney is a Newsweek journalist in Taipei, Taiwan. It covers US-Chinese relations, security disorders of East Asia and Southeast Asia, and the links between the characteristics between China and Taiwan. You can touch Micah by sending an email to Mr. McCartney@newsweek. com.
According to the facts, observed and verified first through the journalist, or informed and verified through informed sources.
China has an update on the seasonal elevation of respiratory viruses, adding human metapneumavirus infections (HMPV).
The World Health Organization (WHO) has the pressure that such epidemics are typical for the winter months and does not cause undue alarm.
Newsweek contacted China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs by email.
HMPV is a pseudo-cruspal disease that can cause symptoms such as cough, fever, nose that flows, nasal congestion and lack of breath. Although gentle, it can provide greater dangers for young children, the elderly and other people with weakened immune systems.
The outbreak has captured public attention, sparking fears reminiscent of the COVID-19 pandemic and surge in pneumonia cases that began in 2023 and overwhelmed hospitals in northern China.
In its update on Thursday, China’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention said that from Dec. 30 to Jan. 5, samples were collected from all over mainland China from patients with flu-like illnesses on an outpatient basis and emergency care.
The samples have been tested for a wide breathing pathogens, adding HMPV, COVVI-19, flu virus, syncitial breathing virus (RSV), adenovirus, rinovirus, enterovirus and pneumoniae mycoplasma.
The CDC in China has also noted a spike in RSV infections in the young elderly aged four and older.
In its Tuesday update, the WHO stressed that the recent increase in respiratory infections—including influenza—across Northern Hemisphere countries aligned with normal seasonal patterns seen in temperate climates.
The organization has downplayed fears regarding the recent build-up in infections, claiming that those trends were expected and not for this time of year. However, he identified that the flow of various pathogens can track fitness care systems.
Amesh Adalja, an infectious-diseases physician and senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, told The Washington Post: “There’s just this tendency post-COVID to treat every infectious-disease anything as an emergency when it’s not. You wouldn’t probably be calling me in 2018 about this.”
The WHO advised individuals with mild HMPV symptoms to stay home to prevent spreading the virus. Those experiencing severe symptoms or who are at higher risk of complications should seek medical attention promptly.
The organization also recommended preventive measures, including wearing a mask in crowded or poorly ventilated areas, covering coughs and sneezes, frequent handwashing, and following public health advice on vaccinations.
Micah McCartney is a reporter for Newsweek based in Taipei, Taiwan. He covers U.S.-China relations, East Asian and Southeast Asian security issues, and cross-strait ties between China and Taiwan. You can get in touch with Micah by emailing [email protected].
Micah McCartney is a reporter for Newsweek based in Taipei, Taiwan. He covers U.S.-China relations, East Asian and Southeast Asian security issues, and cross-strait ties between China and Taiwan. You can get in touch with Micah by emailing [email protected].