Rising HMPV cases pose little pandemic threat – experts

Some disease experts have assured that the rising cases of human metapneumovirus (HMPV) spreading across northern China do not pose a serious pandemic threat to the international community.

Paul Griffin, an associate professor of medicine and director of infectious diseases at Mater Health Services in Australia in a monitored report said that while the surge in cases has been significant, there is some level of immunity in the global community from previous infections.

According to the expert, unlike COVID-19, which sprouted as a wholly new disease, driving a pandemic scale, HMPV infections are familiar.

“I don’t think we’re necessarily concerned about a pandemic with this virus, but the surge in cases and impact it’s having are significant…A good lesson can be taken (from the COVID-19 pandemic) to reduce the spread, particularly given we don’t have vaccines or antivirals for HMPV,” he said.

Human metapneumovirus (HMPV) is like a milder flu, often causing cold-like symptoms. However, it can be serious for some, especially the elderly, young children, and those with weakened immune systems, potentially leading to bronchitis or pneumonia.

According to findings, HMPV is related to RSV and has been around since the early 2000s. It typically spreads during colder months.

Reports from local officials indicate a sharp increase in cases, primarily affecting children, in northern regions of China.

China’s CDC has advised the public to prioritise health and hygiene measures while dismissing online reports of hospital overcrowding and concerns about a new pandemic resembling COVID-19.

Mao Ning, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said respiratory illnesses typically reach their highest point during the winter months in an address last week.

She stated that the infections appear to be less severe and spread on a smaller scale compared to the previous year.

According to Jacqueline Stephens, a senior lecturer in public health at Flinders University in Australia, more caution is required to stop the infections in their tracks.

He described the symptoms of HMPV as similar to a cold or flu, and it is one of several viruses often lumped under a broad definition of the “common cold. It is not a notifiable disease like Covid-19 or influenza, he said.

“There’s a range of others … that are not notifiable because they are very common and lots of people get them. They make us feel terrible for a few days but if we rest and recuperate for a few days then we get better,” said Stephens.

According to a study by the China Centre for Disease Control between 2017 and 2023, around 11.1 million cases of acute lower respiratory infections globally were attributable to HMPV, causing roughly 502,000 hospitalisations and 113,000 deaths.

The most frequently observed clinical signs of HMPV infection are upper and lower respiratory tract infections, the centre says.

As of December 2024, China’s disease control authority said it was piloting a monitoring system for pneumonia of unknown origin, with cases of some respiratory diseases expected to rise, according to a Reuters report.

The move to establish a dedicated system is aimed at helping authorities set up protocols to handle unknown pathogens, in contrast to the lower level of preparedness five years ago when the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 first emerged.