The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is closely monitoring reports of a spike in human metapneumovirus (HMPV) in China.
HMPV, which was discovered in 2001, is common but underdiagnosed due to its similarities to the common cold, according to the CDC.
Cases of the virus in the United States are at “pre-pandemic” levels and are not “a cause for concern” at the moment, but there is a large spike in northern China, especially in children 14 and under, according to media reports in Beijing.
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Chinese government officials said the reported spike coincides with seasonal illness and seems to be less severe than in other years.
“Respiratory infections tend to peak during the winter season,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Friday.
Dr. Eileen Schneider, a medical epidemiologist in the CDC’s Division of Viral Diseases, said HMPV is “associated …