Thai health authorities confirmed on Saturday that there is no cluster of the human metapneumovirus (hMPV) in Thailand, and urged the public not to panic.
The Department of Disease Control (DDC) has followed up on information from the World Health Organization and China about hMPV cases and was informed there was no confirmation of a serious outbreak of hMPV in China, said Dr Panumas Yanawetsakul, the DDC director-general.
He said the hMPV virus is a respiratory disease virus that has been around for a long time and is not caused by Covid-19 infection.
Symptoms are similar to flu and respiratory syncytial virus infection, such as fever and coughing. Some may experience pneumonia or an acute asthma attack. Currently, there is no antiviral drug for this disease, Dr Panumas said.
Direk Khampaen, the DDC deputy director-general, said Thailand found 42 hMPV infections last year. The largest number of infections was found in children under 5 years old, followed by people 50–59 years old and 30–39 years old.
“There have been no reports of cluster outbreaks so the public should not panic,” he said.
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