No unusual spike in respiratory illness cases: Health ministry amid China HMPV spread

A Joint Monitoring Group (JMG) meeting was convened on Saturday to discuss the rising cases of respiratory illnesses in China. The meeting, chaired by Directorate General of Health Services Dr Atul Goel, concluded that the situation in China is not unusual given the ongoing flu season.

According to the Health Ministry, India is closely monitoring the situation, and surveillance data shows no surge in respiratory illnesses. The ministry attributed the rise in cases in China to influenza virus, respiratory syncytial virus, and human metapneumovirus (HMPV), which are common pathogens during the flu season.

The government is keeping a close watch on the situation, and the World Health Organisation (WHO) has been requested to provide timely updates. The ministry assured that these viruses are already in circulation globally, including India, and that a robust surveillance system is in place to monitor influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) cases.

Physicians from hospitals confirmed that there is no surge in respiratory illness cases in the last few weeks.

“The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) network also tests for other respiratory viruses such as adenovirus, RSV, HMPV etc. and these pathogens also do not show an unusual increase in the tested samples. As a precautionary measure, the number of laboratories testing for HMPV will be enhanced by ICMR, and it will be monitoring trends of HMPV for the entire year,” officials in the ministry said.

Experts from the WHO, Disaster Management Cell, Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP), National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), ICMR, Emergency Medical Relief Division, and hospitals, including AIIMS-Delhi participated in the meeting.