(Photo by Marou Sarne)
DOH Assistant Secretary Dr. Albert Domingo stated that there's no reason for the Philippines to enforce a lockdown on all its borders.
According to Domingo, HMPV typically strikes China during the winter season, but the current cases there are still fewer than in 2023. The cases of rhinovirus, a primary cause of the common cold and cough, have also increased there.
HMPV causes infections in the upper and lower respiratory tract, resulting in cough, cold, and fever-symptoms common to several other viruses.
HMPV originates from the family of the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which causes brief infections. Like RSV, HMPV occurs during cold weather and has the potential to turn into an epidemic if the number of infected individuals rises significantly at any time.
No cure or vaccine for it has been developed yet, but one is in the works, according to Albert Osterhaus, a virologist at the Erasmus Medical University in Rotterdam. Their studies have also found that children aged five and above start developing antibodies against HMPV.
He suggested that to avoid HMPV, people should maintain cleanliness, avoid individuals with a cold and cough, wear masks, and if they are sick, they should stay at home.
According to epidemiologists worldwide, this virus might have been spreading for centuries but was only discovered by Dutch researchers in 2001.
Jill Carr, a virologist at Flinders University, said that the HMPV spreading in China now is different from the coronavirus pandemic. HMPV, she said, is not new and there have been no recorded mutations.
"But don't panic... even with the common cold, the rhinovirus, there is really no cure for it. The real prevention there is to boost the immune system," concluded DOH Assistant Secretary Domingo.
