HMPV symptoms: 'Hidden signs' of mystery virus Brits MUST know as infection wreaks havoc in China
Share:
Brits have been issued a warning over the symptoms of a flu-like virus currently sweeping China. Human metapneumovirus (HMPV) cases have been on the rise in parts of the country, particularly amongst children. Pictures emerging from Chinese hospitals show people masking up in packed waiting rooms as Beijing acknowledges the surge.
A rise in cases has also been reported in India, Malaysia and Kazakhstan. Now UKHSA data has revealed cases of the virus, which can be serious and even deadly among infants and clinically vulnerable patients, are slightly up from this time last year. Some 4.53% of patients visiting UK hospitals with respiratory complaints tested positive for the virus in the seven days up to December 23, government data shows, almost double what it was in the first week of the month. HMPV symptoms are often mistaken for a common cold or flu, with most young children being struck with it by the age of five.
HMPV is a virus resulting in cold-like symptoms including a cough, fever and a runny or blocked nose. Like Covid, it's spread through droplet particles in the air, either from coughing or sneezing, or left on surfaces. The most vulnerable are children under two and those with weakened immune systems, such as cancer patients currently receiving chemotherapy. Public health experts have warned the virus is not like the onset of Covid experienced five years ago, but that Brits should not get complacent about the risk as many could be spreading it to vulnerable people without knowing it.
