Experts reassure denizens, say HMPV outbreak not new
Hyderabad: Experts have said that the current HMPV outbreak in China was not new, and it has been present for the past eight years.
The experts said that the COVID-19 pandemic had likely contributed to an increase in susceptibility due to reduced exposure and transmission of HMPV, weaker maternal antibody protection, and a larger pool of susceptible individuals. As per the analysis done by the Indian Medical Association-Telangana Scientific Committee convener, Dr Kiran Madhala, the Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) was a single-stranded, negative-sense, non-segmented RNA virus. Dr Kiran said that in 2016, it was reclassified into the Metapneumovirus genus within the Pneumoviridae family. Dr Kiran Madhala says that HMPV has two subtypes: A and B. These subtypes further consist of six genotypes, with A2c and B2 being the most common. The A2c genotype, characterised by a 111-nucleotide duplication, was the predominant variant globally until 2022. In 2018, HMPV caused 1.1 crore (11 million) cases globally, with a hospitalisation rate of five per cent and a fatality rate of approximately one per cent.
The characteristics of HMPV infection are clinical symptoms of fever, cough (often with expectoration), and pneumonia (more common compared to COVID-19 and RSV). The positivity rate varies between seven per and 40 per cent (2022, China). The children aged between one and four years are the most vulnerable. HMPV shows less fever and cough but higher chances of pneumonia compared to the respiratory viruses like COVID-19.
As per the outbreak analysis in China (2017–2023), the current HMPV outbreak in China is not new; it has been present for the past eight years. The COVID-19 pandemic likely contributed to an increase in susceptibility due to reduced exposure and transmission of HMPV, weaker maternal antibody protection, and a larger pool of susceptible individuals.