Doctors, however, called for educating the public on preventive measures such as hand hygiene, influenza vaccinations, while “maintaining composure”. “Unlike COVID, which predominantly affected adults, the new pneumonia outbreak in China raises concerns about a potential vulnerability in children. Given the limited information available, it is essential to prioritize preventive measures such as hand hygiene, influenza vaccinations, isolating affected children, and using face coverings,” said Sachin Kumar, Senior Consultant, Pulmonology and Critical Care Medicine, Sakra World Hospital.
“Various factors, including viral mutations or environmental conditions, can contribute to the new pneumonia outbreak in China. India should take proactive measures to protect children by enhancing surveillance, encouraging vaccination, and implementing public health awareness campaigns,” added Anjali R Nath, Consultant Pulmonologist, SPARSH Hospital.
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While the outbreak raised concerns of a new virus or a mutation in an existing respiratory virus, China assured the World Health Organization that they did not detect any unusual or novel pathogen.The WHO said that China, provided data indicating an increase in outpatient consultations and hospital admissions of children due to Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia since May, and RSV, adenovirus and influenza virus since October.
“Chinese authorities advised that there has been no detection of any unusual or novel pathogens or unusual clinical presentations, including in Beijing and Liaoning,” the WHO said in a statement.China said there has been a “general increase in respiratory illnesses due to multiple known pathogens. They further stated that the rise in respiratory illness has not resulted in patient loads exceeding hospital capacities”.
Some of these increases are earlier in the season than historically experienced, but not unexpected given the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions, as similarly experienced in other countries. No changes in the disease presentation were reported by the Chinese health authorities, the UN health body said.
Source: IANS
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