While some members of the medical community have sought to ease concerns about Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV), others remain cautious, citing insufficient data on the strength of the current virus and advising precautions, particularly around young children and infants.
They point out that there are fewer than 20 known active HMPV cases in the country—too few for a credible study on the virus's effects on those who come into contact with it, despite the global fears it has triggered in recent weeks.
Noted Unani medicine practitioner and national trustee of the International Unani Forum, Dr Yousuf Khalil, says, "Unfortunately, the current response trajectory follows a pattern we saw during the early days of the COVID pandemic, with senior medical practitioners dismissing it as nothing more than a minor respiratory infection."
Khalil explains that the response from senior medical administrators is understandable, as they are trying to prevent panic and overcrowding in hospitals—a prospect that could prove counterproductive in the face of a communicable infection.
In defence of the initial response, Khalil adds, "We must understand cultural drivers. We are a society susceptible to hysterical reactions to diseases, with a known history of discarding and ostracising patients with communicable illnesses."
Concluding his argument, Khalil acknowledges that while the response from medical administrators is understandable, he cautions against the statements being interpreted as a rollback of the threat, which still warrants precautions in public spaces.
Oblivious to the debate surrounding the HMPV threat, very few people in the state capital were seen wearing masks or taking other precautions.
Shoppers, business owners, and office-goers at New Market, Bittan Market, 10 Number Stop Market, and MP Nagar said that they were aware of the threat and were happy to note that the situation had not spiralled out of control.
Responding to queries, Chief Medical and Health Officer Dr Prabhakar Tiwari said that though the current HMPV scare carries great academic importance, it hasn't yet shown signs of acquiring proportions that would require any special arrangements at government-run health facilities in the district.
Dr Tiwari said that the treatment for the virus is mostly symptomatic, but the health administration was monitoring the situation, and preparedness would be stepped up to meet any exigencies.
Ayurveda practitioner Dr Umesh Shukla agrees, "Normally, infections in the upper respiratory tract are managed within a week's time, but they are, however, more persistent in some cases."
Despite divisions in medical opinion, health practitioners in the state capital agree that precautionary principles should be maintained by people, especially those with underlying respiratory conditions.
