Union Health Ministry on rising pneumonia cases in China, says ‘Closely monitoring outbreak’

Amid a sudden surge in mysterious pneumonia cases in China, India is closely monitoring the health situation in its neighbouring country, said Union Health Ministry on Friday.

The ministry also said that there is a low risk to India from the avian influenza cases reported from China as well as the clusters of respiratory illness.

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“Union Health Ministry is closely monitoring the reported outbreak of H9N2 cases and clusters of respiratory illness in children in northern China,” said the Health Ministry in its press release. 

Regarding the rise in cases of respiratory illness in children as usual, the Health Ministry cited WHO and said that there has been no identification of an unusual pathogen or any unexpected clinical manifestations.

Recently, a meeting was held under the Chairmanship of the Directorate General Of Health Services (DGHS) to discuss the preparedness measures taken against human cases of Avian Influenza in the country against the backdrop of a human case of H9N2 (Avian influenza virus) in October 2023 in China that was reported to WHO. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has indicated a low probability of the human-to-human spread of H9N2 (aviation influenza).

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Pneumonia outbreak in China 

After recovering from the devastating impact of COVID-19, China is witnessing a sudden rise in pneumonia cases among children. There have been multiple reports suggesting a surge in hospitalisation in the country. 

The surge in respiratory illnesses among children has come in the backdrop of the easing of COVID-19 restrictions and the resurgence of well-known pathogens, including influenza, mycoplasma pneumonia, a widespread bacterial infection, that mainly targets the young population, etc, according to China officials. 

Mycoplasma pneumoniae bacteria is responsible for mild infections affecting a person's respiratory system. Sometimes, it can cause serious lung infections that can lead to hospitalisation, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.