Unidentified Pneumonia Grips Chinese Schools: Echoes of COVID Crisis

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Highlights:

• Mysterious pneumonia outbreak in Chinese schools echoes the early days of COVID
• Hospitals in Beijing and Liaoning are overwhelmed as sick children lack typical symptoms
• ProMed issues alerts on "undiagnosed pneumonia" affecting children, sparking fears of a potential epidemic

Is China Bracing for Another Pandemic? Unidentified Pneumonia Hits Schools Facing the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, China is confronted with a fresh challenge: an enigmatic pneumonia outbreak sweeping through educational institutions (1^✔).

This disconcerting situation, reminiscent of the initial stages of the COVID crisis, has triggered a surge in hospital admissions, casting a foreboding shadow over the nation's healthcare system.

‘Children hit by mystery pneumonia, no cough observed. #pneumonia #China # pandemic #medindia’

Medical facilities in Beijing and Liaoning, located 500 miles northeast, are grappling with an upsurge in sick children, stretching their capacities to the brink. Reports from local media indicate that the outbreak may lead to imminent school closures.

Unconventional Symptoms Reported

The affected children display unconventional symptoms such as lung inflammation and high fever, notably lacking the typical cough and other indicators associated with influenza, RSV, and similar respiratory ailments.

On Tuesday evening, ProMed, an open-access surveillance platform monitoring global disease outbreaks in humans and animals, issued an alert concerning an emerging epidemic of "undiagnosed pneumonia," particularly affecting children.

Alert by WHO

A ProMed alert issued in late December 2019 served as a crucial early warning about a novel virus, subsequently identified as SARS-CoV-2, alerting a diverse group of medical professionals and scientists, including high-ranking officials at the World Health Organization.

In an editor's note, ProMed stated, "This report indicates a widespread outbreak of an undiagnosed respiratory illness... It is unclear when this outbreak was initiated, as it would be unusual for so many children to be affected so rapidly. The report does not mention any affected adults, suggesting potential exposure within the school environment."

It is premature to determine whether this could evolve into another pandemic, but, as a seasoned influenza virologist once remarked, "The pandemic clock is ticking; we just do not know what time it is."

Reference:

1. The aftermath of the corona virus pandemic - (https:www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7923856/)

Source: Medindia

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