Third HMPV virus case reported in India, two-year-old child infected in Gujarat after 2 cases in Bengaluru

Hours after two cases of Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) were reported in Bengaluru, one more case was detected in Gujarat on Monday. This takes the tally to three cases in the country. A two-year-old child was reported to be infected from Chandkheda's area of Ahmedabad. The child, from Rajasthan, was admitted to a private hospital in Chandkheda after showing symptoms of cold and cough. The child is stable now, reports quoted civic officials as saying.

This comes after the Health Ministry said on Monday informed of two HMPV cases in two babies -- aged three- and eight-month-old -- in Bengaluru. The HMPV infection was detected via routine surveillance in a 3-month-old girl and an 8-month-old boy in Bengaluru.

Both had a history of bronchopneumonia -- a form of pneumonia, a lung infection. Bronchopneumonia affects both the alveoli in the lungs and the bronchi. "Both cases were identified through routine surveillance for multiple respiratory viral pathogens, as part of ICMR's ongoing efforts to monitor respiratory illnesses across the country,” the health ministry statement said.

The ministry noted that while the baby girl “has been discharged”, the baby boy “is now recovering”. “It is important to note that neither of the affected patients have any history of international travel,” the Ministry said. ICMR will continue to track trends in HMPV circulation throughout the year.

HMPV was first discovered in 2001 and is part of the Pneumoviridae family along with the Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). The symptoms commonly associated with HMPV include cough, fever, nasal congestion, and shortness of breath.