WHO Urges China to Provide Information on Mysterious Disease Outbreak
The World Health Organization (WHO) is demanding that China immediately provide detailed information about a large outbreak of a mysterious respiratory disease, particularly affecting children. The international public health organization, ProMED, has emphasized that it is unusual for so many children to be affected so quickly, and is urging Chinese authorities to share epidemiological and clinical information about the outbreaks.
The cases are undiagnosed, but it is known that the disease is respiratory in nature. Chinese authorities have attributed the increase in cases to the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions and the circulation of known pathogens such as influenza and mycoplasma pneumoniae. However, it is still unclear if the undiagnosed cases of childhood pneumonia reported in northern China are related to the respiratory infections.
The WHO has called on China to provide lab results from the cluster reports and details on any trends in pathogen circulation. They also want the country to openly report the pressure the outbreak has created on the healthcare system.
As a precaution, the WHO has also urged people in China to take measures to reduce the risk of respiratory diseases, such as getting recommended vaccination doses, staying home when sick, wearing masks around other people, and regularly washing hands.
The organization is awaiting further information about the extent of the outbreak but has emphasized that it is too early to speculate or make any forecasts. The aim is to prevent the spread of the disease and protect the population from further infections.