After the reports surfaced about rising cases of Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) in China in the past few weeks, the government stated that India is well-prepared to handle respiratory illnesses and surveillance shows no unusual surge in the country.
Recently, in a joint monitoring group (JMG) meeting under the chairmanship of DGHS, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, experts had detailed discussions around the spread of this respiratory illnesses in China. According to them, the situation in China is not unusual in view of the ongoing flu season.
The reports suggest that the cause of the present surge is influenza virus, RSV and HMPV as they are the usual pathogens that are expected during the season.
The government has said that it is keeping a close watch over the situation through all available channels and the World Health Organisation (WHO) has also been requested to share timely updates regarding the situation in China.
A robust surveillance system for Influenza Like Illness (ILI) and Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI) for Influenza is already in place in India through both ICMR and IDSP networks and the data from both indicates no unusual surge in ILI and SARI cases.
Physicians from hospitals have confirmed that there is no surge in respiratory illness cases in the last few weeks other than the expected seasonal variation.
Data from the recently conducted preparedness drill indicated that the country is prepared to deal with any increase in respiratory illnesses.
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.
According to health ministry, as a precautionary measure, the number of laboratories testing for HMPV will be enhanced by ICMR. It will be monitoring trends of HMPV for the entire year.