The Centre and India’s top medical body, the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR), said “There’s no need to panic.”
New Delhi: Three cases of Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) have been found in India – two in Bengaluru and one in Ahmedabad. The cases were found in babies and one of them has been sent home from the hospital. The Centre and India’s top medical body, the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR), have said “There’s no need to panic” and “HMPV is already going around globally, including in India.”
However, as reports of HMPV outbreak in China emerged, #Lockdown started trending on social media, with people drawing parallels between the HMPV surge and the COVID-19 outbreak in 2019-2020 in China, which later led to a global pandemic. India reported its first case of COVID-19 in January 2020 in Kerala.
HMPV is a viral pathogen that causes respiratory infections in people of all age groups. It was first discovered in 2001 and is known to cause illnesses ranging from mild respiratory discomfort to severe complications, especially in vulnerable populations such as infants, older adults and individuals with weakened immune systems.