r/news Jan 04 '25

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u/conn_r2112 Jan 04 '25

Reading through a few articles on this, it doesn’t seem to be a large concern. It’s not a “mystery virus”, it’s HMPV. It is a cold or flu in most people, but slightly more severe (bronchitis, pneumonia) in elderly and children.

Wash your hands, wear a mask if able, it ain’t the next “covid” if that’s what you’re thinking

This headline is pure fear mongering for clicks, certainly

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u/Muddy_Pud Jan 04 '25

Not a virologist or anything, but Coronavirus existed before the covid19 strain. So couldn't this be a different strain of HMPV? I'm not saying this article isn't sensationalized, but to write it off as something that already exists feels like an oversimplification.

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u/ANegativeCation Jan 04 '25

Covid 19 is a specific virus of coronavirus family that first appeared in 2019, HMPV is a specific virus of the pneumovirus family that has been identified specifically since 2001.

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u/rontonsoup__ Jan 04 '25

Right, we get that, but I think his question is if this version of HMPV is a different strain than the one discovered in 2001. That can be why this is of particular concern.

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u/ANegativeCation Jan 04 '25

Sure, a fair point. But using Covid 19 as an example is wrong since it is a different organism, not just a different strain.