Title: World Health Organization Requests Information from China on Rise in Respiratory Illness among Children
The World Health Organization has asked China for information on a rise in respiratory illness among children, reflecting increased vigilance over outbreaks of infectious disease since the Covid-19 pandemic. China’s National Health Commission reported an increase in respiratory disease cases, citing a rise in infections involving pathogens including influenza, mycoplasma pneumoniae, and Sars-Cov-2.
The WHO’s request, made under the International Health Regulations mechanism, comes after reports of “undiagnosed pneumonia” in northern China from ProMed, the outbreak surveillance network that first alerted the world to Covid. The health body has asked for additional epidemiologic and clinical information, as well as laboratory results from the reported clusters among children.
The UN health agency is uncertain whether the latest reported problems in children are associated with an overall increase in respiratory infections cited by the Chinese authorities or separate events. This request for data and prompt investigation of possible respiratory illness surges reflects the heightened awareness and caution following the global spread of Covid-19.
Some western health experts have linked the outbreaks in China to the country’s stringent pandemic lockdown, suggesting that other countries experienced big waves of respiratory infections in children during their first winter after pandemic restrictions were lifted. François Balloux, director of the University College London Genetics Institute, stated, “Unless new evidence emerges, there is no reason to suspect the emergence of a novel pathogen.”
Beijing’s Capital Institute of Pediatrics has been overcrowded with parents and sick children, with reports of lengthy waiting times for treatment. Some parents reported difficulty in diagnosing and treating their children’s respiratory illnesses, with one parent stating it took several days and CT scans before their child was diagnosed with pneumonia caused by mycoplasma.
The WHO’s data request and the reports of overcrowding in children’s hospitals in China highlight the continued challenges and vigilance in monitoring and responding to respiratory illness outbreaks in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.