WHO’s concern over the rise in respiratory diseases – L’Express

These concerns come almost four years after the appearance in China of a mysterious “viral pneumonia”, which would be at the origin of the Covid-19 pandemic, and for which the WHO had been criticized for its supposed lack of responsiveness to raising the alert.

“WHO has sent an official request to #China for detailed information on an increase in respiratory illnesses and outbreaks of pneumonia reported in children,” the organization wrote on X (formerly Twitter) in a press release including the authenticity was confirmed to AFP by a WHO spokesperson. The organization recommends following “measures to reduce the risk of respiratory illness.”

Already recommended during the Covid-19 pandemic, these include vaccination, distancing from patients, isolation in the event of symptoms, tests and care if necessary as well as wearing a mask if appropriate.

Speaking to the press on November 13, Chinese authorities attributed this increase in respiratory illnesses to the lifting of restrictions linked to Covid-19 and the circulation of known pathogens. They then stressed the need to improve disease surveillance in health establishments and community settings, as well as to strengthen the capacity of the health system to care for patients, recalls the WHO.

Official media and the global disease monitoring system ProMED each reported cases of unconfirmed pneumonia in children in northern China on Tuesday. The WHO said it is seeking to clarify where ProMED gets this information from.

The Geneva-based organization on Wednesday requested from China “additional epidemiological and clinical information, as well as laboratory results on these reported outbreaks in children, through the International Health Regulations mechanism.”

The WHO “also requested additional information on recent trends in the circulation of known pathogens, including influenza, SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes Covid-19), RSV which affects infants and Mycoplasma pneumoniae (a bacteria causing a lung infection, editor’s note), as well as on the degree of congestion in the health system,” the press release further specifies. WHO is connecting with clinicians and scientists through its existing technical partnerships and networks in China.

The Organization gave no indication of China’s response to the request for information. The WHO has repeatedly criticized the Chinese authorities for their lack of transparency and cooperation during the Covid-19 pandemic, the first cases of which appeared in China at the end of 2019.

This lack of cooperation was also denounced by the WHO and many other countries in the investigation carried out to determine the origins of the pandemic and which has still not led to a definitive conclusion.