Unidentified Pneumonia outbreak in China: WHO requests information

China has reported an outbreak of influenza-like disease, primarily among children, prompting the World Health Organization to inquire into the unusual outbreak. According to reports, Chinese hospitals are “overwhelmed with sick children” with respiratory sickness symptoms. According to the WHO, on November 12, Chinese officials from the National Health Commission held a news conference and reported an increase in respiratory ailments in the country.

This was due to the removal of the COVID-19 limitations. The WHO has requested more information on recent trends in the circulation of known diseases such as influenza, SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19), RSV affecting babies, and Mycoplasma pneumonia, as well as the degree of congestion in the health system, according to the statement.

All you need to know about the mysterious pneumonia outbreak in China

1. ProMed, a publicly accessible surveillance system that conducts global reporting of infectious disease outbreaks, issued a warning about “undiagnosed pneumonia” in youngsters. Long before the pandemic, ProMed issued an alarm about SARs-CoV-2 in December 2019.
2. According to Taiwanese FTV News, hospitals in Beijing and Liaoning have been overwhelmed by an inflow of children suffering from pneumonia.
3. Because Beijing and Lianoning are 800 kilometers apart, unexplained pneumonia is not considered a local outbreak.
4. While nothing is known about the outbreak, FTV reports that the infected children have no symptoms or cough. They do, however, have a high temperature and lung nodules.
5. “The lobby of Dalian Children’s Hospital is full of sick children receiving intravenous drips. There are also queues of patients at the traditional Chinese medicine hospitals and the central hospitals. A staff member of Dalian Central Hospital said: ‘Patients have to wait in line for 2 hours, and we are all in the emergency department, and there are no general outpatient clinics’,” the ProMed mail alert read.
6. “This report suggests a widespread outbreak of an undiagnosed respiratory illness… It is not at all clear when this outbreak started as it would be unusual for so many children to be affected so quickly,” the ProMed note said.
7. Some teachers have reportedly been sick, as the outbreaks have primarily been reported in schools. Some schools have closed. It is unknown when the outbreak began.
8. In a lengthy conversation on X, epidemiologist Eric-Feigl-Dingh broke down the situation by sharing videos from hospitals and letters from residents.
9. A story in the China Daily stated that ‘Beijing has entered the peak season for respiratory infectious disorders, with various pathogens co-circulating…’ without mentioning any mystery outbreak.
10. More information is needed, according to specialists, to assess the situation, since it might be a new outbreak of walking pneumonia or an increase in respiratory infections because this is China’s first winter without strict COVID lockdown.