Experts warn nation may see spike in walking pneumonia

Doctors are warning that 2023 may see a spike of mycoplasma pneumonia infections as the number of patients increases in several regions, China News Service reported. The infection is commonly referred to as "walking pneumonia" because it rarely requires hospitalization.

During the eight-day National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, more than 1,000 patients visited the fever clinic at the Zhujiang new town branch of Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center. Most of them were respiratory tract infections, specifically walking pneumonia.

"In previous years, we typically observed a downward trend of infected cases within a quarter, but this year it has persisted for over five months," said Li Shuhua, director of the internal medicine clinic at Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center.

Li added that since June of this year, cases of walking pneumonia have increased. As of now, various respiratory infections in children have been risen rapidly. In addition to respiratory syncytial virus, parainfluenza virus, rhinovirus, and influenza virus, 20 to 30 percent of child patients have been infected with mycoplasma pneumonia.

Li Tongzeng, chief physician of the respiratory and infectious diseases department of Beijing You An Hospital said that before COVID-19, there would be a major outbreak of walking pneumonia every three to seven years. In the past three years, the incidence of respiratory diseases has decreased due to epidemic prevention and control measures. However, this situation may lead to insufficient immunity, especially for children. With adjustments to epidemic prevention and control measures, the number of infections this year may significantly increase compared to previous years.

Li added that after being infected with walking pneumonia, most people experience upper respiratory tract symptoms such as fever, cough, sore throat, nasal congestion, and runny nose. In a small percentage of cases, it may progress to pneumonia, which involves a lower respiratory tract infection and presents with recurrent high fever, severe cough, and obvious expectoration, chest pain, muscle soreness, fatigue, and headache in later stages. These symptoms can last for two to three weeks.

"If a child has the above symptoms and they do not improve after more than a week, it is necessary to consider whether it is a mycoplasma pneumonia infection. They should go to the hospital for testing," said Li.

Chang Hesheng, deputy chief physician in the department of pediatrics at Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, said walking pneumonia is an atypical pathogen, rather than bacterium or virus. Also, The walking pneumonia is highly contagious and there is no specific vaccine against that.

In February this year, China's National Health Commission issued guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of mycoplasma pneumonia in children. It states that mycoplasma pneumonia is common in children over five years old, but children below that age can also develop the disease.

Compared with previous years, walking pneumonia in China has shown a trend towards affecting younger age groups, and some children under three years old have also been affected.

To lower infection risks, experts urged the public to pay attention to indoor ventilation, avoid crowded and poorly ventilated public places, and wear masks when necessary. When coughing or sneezing, cover the mouth and nose with a tissue and maintain good hand hygiene by frequently washing hands with soap and water. Schools and kindergartens should pay attention to ventilation and disinfection to prevent clustered infections.