HMPV not new virus in India: Health Ministry says as cases detected

Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda. File.
| Photo Credit: PTI

The Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) is already in circulation globally, including in India, said the Health Ministry on Monday (January 6, 2025) while stating that none of the cases in India have any travel history and that all the infected persons are recovering well.

“The virus occurrence in India is not new,’’ emphasised the Ministry. The Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda in a video statement said, “Health experts have clarified that the HMPV is not a new virus. It was first identified in 2001 and it has been circulating in the entire world for many years. HMPV spreads through airby way of respiration. This can affect persons of all age groups. The health systems and surveillance networks of the country are vigilant and there is no reason to worry.”

Editorial | Nothing alarming: on China’s HMPV cases

He added that agencies in India are keeping a close watch on the situation in China as well as in the neighbouring countries while the World Health Organization (WHO) has taken cognisance of the situation.

The Ministry added that the current data from India Council for Medical Research (ICMR) and the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) network indicated no unusual surge in Influenza-Like Illness (ILI) or Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI) cases in the country.

Soumya Swaminathan, former chief scientist, WHO, in her social media post on Monday said that HMPV is nothing to panic about. “It’s a known virus that causes respiratory infections, mostly mild. Rather than jump at detection of every pathogen, we should all take normal precautions when we have a cold: wear a mask, wash hands, avoid crowds, consult doctor if there are severe symptoms,” she wrote.

Additional Professor, Internal Medicine at All India Institute of Medical Science, Delhi Neeraj Nischal also said that we cannot compare HMPV with the coronavirus as COVID-19 was completely new and we didn’t have any immunity against it.

“HMPV has been described since 2001, and even based on evidence, it dates back to the late 1950s. By the age of 10, the majority of the children develop immunity against this,’’ he said.

Meanwhile, HMPV cases have been confirmed in two infants from Karnataka (none of them had any travel history) and Gujarat. The two cases from Karnataka were identified through routine surveillance for multiple respiratory viral pathogens, as part of ICMR’s ongoing efforts to monitor respiratory illnesses across the country.

Also a two-month-old boy from Rajasthan’s Dungarpur district, was detected with HMPV infection at a private hospital in Ahmedabad, was born through premature delivery, said principal secretary (Medical & Health) Gayatri Rathore in Jaipur on Monday.

Health Departments for DelhiKarnataka, and Maharashtra have now issued an advisory for dos and don’ts to tackle the possible spread of the virus. The Central government also noted that it is monitoring the situation through all available surveillance channels while ICMR will continue to track trends in HMPV circulation throughout the year. The WHO is already providing timely updates regarding the situation in China to further inform ongoing measures.

(Input by Mohammed Iqbal, Afshan Yasmeen and Vinaya Deshpande Pandit)