"We are ready": Haryana Health Minister Arti Singh Rao on HMPV scare

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Amid rising concern around Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV), Haryana Health Minister Arti Singh Rao assured the people that the state is ready to handle the situation and said there is no need to panic. "We are ready. All the districts have been informed to stay alert... I want to request that the people should not be panicked. This virus can spread but it is not dangerous. It can be treated..," Rao told ANI. She also urged people to stay fit during the winter season.

"Since it is winter now, there are chances of more people getting Pneumonia, so I request everyone to get a mucus test done in case they have any symptoms. They should also keep their hands clean like we did during Covid-19..." she further said. On January 12, a 10-month-old child in Assam had been diagnosed with the virus, which marked the state's first recorded case, as per officials.

Superintendent of Assam Medical College and Hospital, Dhruv Jyoti Bhuiyan confirmed the infection, stating that a test was conducted on the child, which returned positive results. "This morning, we got the report of the child who had come here who had cough and symptoms and had been diagnosed with the HMPV virus. The test was part of the routine but the results came positive. There is nothing to worry about, the child is perfectly alright, it is a 10-month-old child.." said Buiyan while speaking to ANI.

The virus was first identified in 2001. On January 9, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported a rise in acute respiratory infections, including HMPV, in the Northern Hemisphere and noted that the rate of infections follows typical seasonal trends.

In its disease outbreak news, WHO observed that while the trends in acute respiratory infections are increasing in many countries of the Northern Hemisphere, these are not unusual and are "typically caused by seasonal epidemics of respiratory pathogens such as seasonal influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and other common respiratory viruses, including human metapneumovirus (HMPV), as well as mycoplasma pneumonia".

The WHO further added that the co-circulation of multiple respiratory pathogens during the winter season can sometimes cause an increased burden on healthcare systems treating sick persons.

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