Pediatric pneumonia outbreaks in a number of nations have some docs and households involved — however statements from public well being businesses counsel there’s no trigger for alarm. That is much like their preliminary reactions to the COVID-19 pandemic, many are saying.
Hospitals in China have reportedly been “overwhelmed with sick children” on account of the pneumonia outbreak, in accordance with ProMED, the worldwide digital illness surveillance system.
Additionally, the Netherlands Institute for Well being Providers Analysis (NIVEL) has reported a surge in instances — as have some U.S. states, together with Ohio and Massachusetts.
The Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC) on Dec. 1 despatched the next assertion to Fox Information medical contributor Dr. Marc Siegel: “As of today, the CDC is not seeing anything out of the ordinary related to levels of mycoplasma across the country, but we are watching it closely.”
On its web site, the company acknowledged that it’s “monitoring reports of increased respiratory illness around the world,” and that “diagnosis of pneumonia in children, along with other respiratory illnesses, increases every year in the fall and winter months.”
Pediatric pneumonia outbreaks in a number of nations have some docs and households involved — however statements from public well being businesses counsel there isn’t a trigger for alarm. (iStock)
The company additionally famous that the variety of children seeking emergency care for recognized pneumonia is “largely consistent with previous years” for kids aged 0 to 4 years, with “slight increases above typical levels” for kids aged 5 to 17.
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“These will increase are seemingly attributable to viruses and bacteria [that] we anticipate to see throughout the respiratory sickness season,” the CDC stated.
The World Well being Group (WHO), too, has chalked up the outbreaks to recognized respiratory diseases slightly than novel viruses.
“As of now, at the present time, Chinese surveillance and hospital systems report that the clinical manifestations are caused by known pathogens in circulation,” WHO stated on its web site.
“These increases are likely caused by viruses and bacteria we expect to see during the respiratory illness season,” the CDC acknowledged on its web site. (REUTERS/Tami Chappell)
“Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a common respiratory pathogen and a common cause of pediatric pneumonia, and is readily treated with antibiotics,” the company additionally stated.
“Due to the arrival of the winter season, the increasing trend in respiratory illnesses is expected; co-circulation of respiratory viruses may increase the burden on health care facilities,” it added.
With the present childhood pneumonia outbreak in China, Siegel stated that each the CDC and WHO have been “upfront asserting that it is not a new pathogen.”
Fox Information medical contributor Dr. Marc Siegel weighed in on the CDC’s reactions to COVID in 2020 — and to the reactions at present to pneumonia in 2023. (Fox Information)
“There is less of a sense of suppressing information, and the high incidence of resistant mycoplasma infection associated with the outbreak has also been clear,” he went on.
“The CDC has also done a good job of tracking cases here, and asserting that there is no connection and that the incidence of mycoplasma has not increased,” stated Siegel. “They are monitoring the situation very closely, which appears to be a real improvement over early 2020.”
Comparability to COVID reactions
The well being businesses’ reactions to the present pneumonia outbreaks in late 2023 have been in comparison with the businesses’ preliminary reactions to the COVID-19 virus in 2020.
“The CDC is our microbiologic liaison to the world. It is our surveillance system. It is our eyes and ears.”
In testimony to Congress on Feb. 27, 2020, then-CDC director Dr. Robert Redfield acknowledged that “most cases of COVID-19 in the United States have been associated with travel from China, but some person-to-person spread among close contacts of travelers has been seen.”
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He additionally stated, “It’s important to note that this virus is not spreading within American communities at this time.”
He went on, “The potential global public health threat posed by this virus is high, but right now, the immediate risk to most Americans is low. The greater risk is for people who have recently traveled to China or been exposed to someone with COVID-19.”
Dr. Brett Osborn, a Florida neurosurgeon and longevity knowledgeable, famous that within the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, earlier than the virus entered the U.S., “the CDC was relatively close-lipped about its specific details.”
Dr. Brett Osborn, a Florida neurosurgeon and longevity knowledgeable, famous that within the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic earlier than the virus entered the U.S., “the CDC was relatively close-lipped about its specific details.” (Dr. Brett Osborn)
“To mitigate the risk of a similar occurrence — and the United States again being caught off-guard — Congress submitted a battery of questions to the CDC demanding answers about the recent pneumonia outbreak in China,” Osborn informed Fox Information Digital. “The agency has yet to respond.”
“It is widely known that China thwarted international efforts, including efforts by the CDC, to respond to the burgeoning COVID-19 crisis as it began to unfold in China.”
In a Nov. 29 letter from the U.S. Committee on Vitality and Commerce to Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention director Mandy Cohen, committee chairs wrote the next: “The Centers for Disease Control and Protection’s (CDC) failure to communicate accurate information in real-time during the COVID-19 pandemic has undermined public trust in the agency. If the CDC is to regain credibility with the American people, it must be transparent and forthcoming with the information it has on public health threats facing our nation.”
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“It is widely known that China thwarted international efforts, including efforts by the CDC, to respond to the burgeoning COVID-19 crisis as it began to unfold in China.”
“It would be an abdication of the CDC’s duty to the American people if it allows China to repeat its misdeeds from the COVID-19 pandemic. The American people should not have to rely on the unaccountable and untrustworthy WHO to communicate information about Chinese public health threats.”
Hospitals in China have reportedly been “overwhelmed with sick children” on account of at present’s pneumonia outbreak, in accordance with ProMED, the worldwide digital illness surveillance system. (iStock)
Siegel identified that with COVID, “the CDC was caught flat-footed, in large part because China was suppressing crucial public health information and CDC was not allowed to have ‘boots on the ground’ to investigate, which they repeatedly requested through CDC Director Robert Redfield.”
He additionally stated, “They did post the structure of the virus online early, but little else.”
Including to the issue, Siegel famous, was that the World Well being Group (WHO) referred to as COVID a “regional problem only.”
Medical personnel administer checks for the coronavirus illness (COVID-19) at a pop-up testing heart in Sydney, Australia, on July 30, 2020. (REUTERS/Loren Elliott/File Picture)
Whereas preliminary knowledge counsel that the pneumonia outbreaks are attributable to recognized viruses — together with RSV, mycoplasma and different common cold viruses — docs and well being authorities are calling for definitive solutions.
“The CDC must drill down on the specifics and apply political pressure on China to best prepare the United States for another potential pandemic,” stated Osborn. “Early warning is critical.”
“The CDC is our microbiologic liaison to the world. It is our surveillance system. It is our eyes and ears,” he went on.
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“We are reliant on its liability to protect the nation through extreme transparency.”
As Osborn identified, “It is always best to err on the side of caution and alert the nation early of a potential problem, or else risk another COVID-19.”
Fox Information Digital reached out to the CDC for remark.
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