Parents were warned to ‘avoid crowded’ spaces’ as one ‘poor baby’ had a ‘high fever for days’ due to the virus – with many more kids battling the virus in hospital beds and wards
15:06, 08 Jan 2025Updated 15:07, 08 Jan 2025
The virus is spreading across China
These are the shocking images that lay bare the true scale of devastation the ‘mystery’ HMPV virus is inflicting on the children of China. Parents of illness-stricken kids have taken to social media to warn others to keep their little ones at home and “avoid crowded spaces”.
It follows disturbing footage taken at a major hospital in Beijing that shows infants and young people hooked up to IV drips in what appears to be a waiting room. The HMPV (human metapneumovirus) virus has also entered Britain just as the NHS creaks under the pressure of a quad-demic and the potentially ‘worst’ flu season to date.
Parents of the bed-ridden children took to social media warned the virus is “no joke”. One child had severe flu-like symptoms and a “high fever for days”.
The virus causes a high fever in kids
One parent said: “We went to the supermarket and [my son] came back with HMPV, please don’t take your child to crowded places.”
Another concerned mother said: “Over the holidays, we went to a shopping mall and she tested positive on HMPV.”
While another said: “This virus is no joke, my poor baby. He has had a high fever for days, but he’s getting better after the treatment. Be careful when you go out with your child.”
Schools in Wuhan were shut down to stem the flow of the virus
In footage published by the Daily Star today, rows of illness-stricken children are being treated with IV drips that are connected to the ceiling of what appears to be a make-shift ward. Mums are seen comforting tiny crying tots in the heartbreaking video.
The disease is likely to see another explosion of growth in the Asian country as preparations for the Chinese New Year gets underway ahead of the big day at the end of the month. The festivities will prove a perfect environment to spread with revellers travelling to be with friends and family on January 29.
Sick children have flooded a major Beijing hospital
In an eerie reminder of the Covid-19 pandemic, schools in Wuhan – the area many associate with the start of the coronavirus – were shut down in a bid to stem the spread of HMPV after 30 pupils fell ill.
While Chinese officials have reassured that the HMPV spread is nothing but a ‘seasonal’ affliction, there are concerns they are ‘downplaying the severity of cases, as the illness has already started to make its mark in the UK.
Parents worried others to keep their children at home
However, the NHS has already got a ‘quad-demic’ on their hands as four illnesses are menacing the immune systems of Brits – alongside hospitals potentially dealing with the ‘worst flu season ever seen’. And now there are fears that HMPV could add further “pressure” to the NHS.
In a bid to monitor and tackle this ‘new’ virus, China has already implemented emergency measures as cases have started to spike across northern Chinese provinces. And it looks children have become the target demographic for this nasty illness, with social media posts highlighting an overflow of tots in hospitals with the Covid-like symptoms.
The virus is believed to be human metapneumovirus (HMPV) – a respiratory virus that riddles the body with symptoms similar to that of the flu, the common cold and Covid.
The images are eerily similar to that of the Covid-19 pandemic
L ike the three illness mentioned above, HMPV can be mild with symptoms ranging from a fever, cough, sore throat and fatigue. It has an incubation period from three to six days, meaning you could have the infection without displaying symptoms during this time period.
However, HMPV can also pose as a huge threat to humans in more severe cases. The respiratory virus can lead to various complications, including pneumonia – a lung infection where the air sacs in the organ fill with fluid or puss, causing breathing problems.
The virus is having a disproportionate impact on children
Most severe cases of HMPV seem to be tied to children, the elderly and those with weakened immune systems or pre-existing conditions.
Despite many first being stunted by this ‘mystery illness’, it isn’t actually new but was first identified 24 years ago back in 2001. The virus is only now causing concern due to its sweeping effect across China and its supposed mirroring of the initial Covid outbreak just over five years ago.
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