Experts declare China’s HMPV virus outbreak might hit grim 43% mortality charge for some
Experts believe China’s recent outbreak of HMPV could reach a staggering mortality rate of 43% amongst certain demographics – children, elderly and immuno-compromised most at risk
Experts believe China’s HMPV virus outbreak could reach mortality rates of a staggering 43% amongst certain demographics.
Widespread concerns have been raised by the recent outbreak of HMPV virus in China after footage of overcrowded hospitals and rows of children hooked up to IV drip began to circulate on social media.
Taiwan-based assistant professor Chao Ming-wei, believes some demographics could face a 43% mortality rate as infants, the elderly and immuno-compromised individuals are at heightened risk.
The statistic originated from a National Institute of Health study that found the same percentage of patients were undergoing (HCT) hematopoietic cell transplantation of a cohort of 23 patients.
Young children are an increased risk also, a doctor at Xi’an’s children hospital, north-western China, confirmed: “We have found a lot of metapneumovirus infections this year, so we think the incidence of severe pneumonia caused by metapneumovirus this year is relatively high, and many children show high fever that does not go away.”
A 2020 Lancet Global Health report found that around 14 million children under the age of five were infected with the HMPV virus and more than 600,000 were hospitalised in 2018 alone.
Out of the hospitalised children number of fatalities were placed at 16,000 giving the virus a mortality rate of one in a 1,000 in children under the age of five.
According to China’s mainland Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, the rate of acute HMPV has fluctuated upwards in cases of children aged under 14 with the increases in northern provinces being the most obvious.
Chao Mingwei stated once again that the most common transmission routes are droplet transmissions such as contact with secretions extracted by patients coughing, sneezing or physical contact between people.
Symptoms of the virus include flu-like symptoms including fever, cough, sore throat and weakness and dizziness. Severe cases of HMPV are capable of causing more serious issues such as pneumonia and Bronchitis.
Chao Mingwei has raised calls for people to avoid travelling to places affected by the recent HMPV virus outbreak in China.
