India alert about new virus spreading in China
New Delhi: The Indian government has become alert about the new virus spreading in China. The Union Health Ministry on Saturday called a meeting of the Joint Monitoring Group on this issue. The Union Health Ministry is closely monitoring the situation in China and WHO has been requested to share timely updates on the situation. India is well prepared to deal with respiratory diseases.
Health Ministry said- no need to worry
The Union Health Ministry on Saturday urged people to remain calm regarding the spread of HMPV (Human Metapneumo Virus) in China. The government said the situation in China is “not unusual”. The ministry said the report also shows that the current increase in patients is due to influenza virus, RSV and HMPV which are common pathogens expected during the season.
Indian government alert about new virus
The Center said India already has a robust surveillance system for influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory illness (SARI). It said data from both the ICMR and IDSP networks showed no unusual increase in the number of ILI and SARI cases. Hospital officials have also confirmed that there has been no increase in cases of the respiratory illness in the last few weeks, barring normal seasonal changes.
The Health Ministry said ICMR also tests for other respiratory viruses like adenovirus, RSV, HMPV, etc. and these pathogens. No abnormal growth was seen in the samples tested. As a precautionary measure, ICMR will increase the number of laboratories testing for HMPV.
If you have cough, avoid coming in contact with people
DGHS Director General Dr Atul Goyal had said on Friday that HMPV is like any other respiratory virus that causes common cold. He urged the public to take the usual precautions taken against all respiratory infections, meaning if someone has a cough and cold they should avoid contact with many people to prevent the infection from spreading.
Input- ANI
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