The US states where hMPV is surging… as virus sparking pandemic fears in China rises across America
A virus that has sparked pandemic fears in China emerged in the U.S. this month, official data shows — and parts of the Midwest have become hotspots.
The CDC reports that 2.2 percent of tests conducted across America in the week ending January 4 were positive for human metapneumovirus (hMPV).
That marked a 25 percent increase from the previous week (1.77 percent) and means that about one in 50 Americans with a cough likely had the virus.
HMPV, which some doctors have described as “the most important virus you’ve never heard of,” gained global attention after it was linked to a viral outbreak in China this month.
Images of crowded waiting rooms and wards posted on Chinese social media were similar to scenes from China at the start of the Covid pandemic.
But the US figures are not unusual for this time of year and doctors have reassured the public that hMPV is mild for most.
By comparison, flu appeared in almost 20 percent of tests conducted in the US in the seven days to January 4.
The CDC data shows that hMPV infections are more than twice the national average in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa. A total of 5.83 percent of tests in the region were positive, up from 4.14 the week before.
ON THE UP: The CDC reports that 2.2 percent of tests conducted across America in the week ending January 4 were positive for hMPV, an increase of 25 percent in a week
FATAL ILL: Diane Davison, 60, a Maryland entertainment lawyer, was struck by hMPV and left ‘unable to speak’ due to ‘violent’ coughing fits
HMPV is much milder than the original Covid strain and the population is already immune to it because it has been around for decades.
In the vast majority of cases, the main symptoms of hMPV are very similar to those of a common cold: coughing, stuffy or runny nose, sore throat and low-grade fever.
Like other viruses, these are caused by the body’s immune system trying to fight it.
However, some may also experience nausea and vomiting. Symptoms usually disappear after about five days.
More severe symptoms such as bronchitis, bronchiolitis and pneumonia, which usually occur in people with compromised immune systems, such as Diane Davison, 60, a lawyer from Maryland, who was “unable to speak” due to “violent” coughing fits.
For the vulnerable, the virus can cause shortness of breath, severe coughing or wheezing.
The US data came as Beijing claimed HMPV infections were declining in northern China.
Wang Liping, a researcher at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said at a press conference on Sunday: “Currently, the number of positive cases in the detection of human metapneumoviruses fluctuates, the number of positive cases in the northern provinces is decreasing, and the number of positive cases among patients aged 14 and under has started to decline,” she said.
The number of patients in fever clinics and emergency departments across the country has increased, but is still lower overall compared to the same period last year, said Gao Xinqiang, deputy director of the health commission’s Emergency Medical Department.
MIDWEST SURGE: Region 7, which includes Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa, has sky-high HMPV rates compared to the rest of the country
This map shows how the CDC breaks down different regions of the US for the weekly breakdown of respiratory infections
“There is no obvious shortage of medical resources,” Gao said.
The number of flu infections nationwide is expected to gradually decline from mid-to-late January, committee spokesman Hu Qiangqiang said.
There are no vaccines or medications available for hMPV. Experts recommend precautions against contracting the virus and other respiratory illnesses, including washing hands frequently, avoiding crowds if possible and wearing a mask in crowded places.
Approximately 20,000 children under the age of five in the US are hospitalized with HMPV each year, and several hundred of those die from the disease.
By comparison, more than 1 million Americans have visited the emergency room for RSV, and nearly 10 million Americans have been struck by the flu since October.
Similar to Covid, hMPV spreads through respiratory droplets that circulate in the air when someone coughs or sneezes.
Close personal contact, such as shaking hands and touching contaminated surfaces, can also spread the disease.