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HumanMetapneumovirus Cases Rises To 7 In India
As the fear over the increase in cases of HMPV in the country is raising, two more cases have been confirmed in Nagpur, Mahrashtra. This made the cumulative HMPV count in India to seven. On Monday, two cases were reported from Bengaluru in Karnataka and one more person from Gujarat got hospitalised and he also tested positive.
The development comes even as china and other countries struggle to contain a new viral fever and pneumonia.
HMPV is an important respiratory pathogen that induces LRI and URTI. It is not a new discovery and such cases have been recorded from different parts of the world in the past years. As with many viruses, no specific antiviral drug has been developed to address the case of HMPV and the focus is squarely put on prevention.
Following the detection of two suspected cases in Nagpur, Maharashtra Medical Education Minister Hasan Mushrif said to the media that, ‘There is no reason to freak out of the matter but children and elderly suffering from co-morbidities need to be cautious’.
While two cases have been confirmed from Tamil Nadu. One of the two cases is from Salem. He was a 69 year-old person with cancer, high blood pressure and diabetes whereas the other was from Chennai and nearly about 45 years of age.
"The Health and FW Department should contact the Union Health Ministry to get timely updates about preparedness in the capital. There is no need to delay action, bring issues to me immediately over the phone if directives are needed. It is important that the Hospitals of the Government of NCT of Delhi should be well-equipped to handle any potential increase in respiratory illness as per the advice of Union Health Ministry," the Minister said.
Maharashtra Health Minister Prakash Abitkar on Tuesday said, as quoted by ANI, "There are no mortalities due to this virus. Since children and the elderly are vulnerable, they need to take precautions. No SoPs issued by Govt of India over the testing of samples yet."