This year, HMPV has been detected in the country for the first time.

This year, HMPV has been detected in the country for the first time.

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For the first time this year, a human metapneumovirus (HMPV) has been detected in an individual. The person is currently undergoing treatment at a hospital in the capital. The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) is closely monitoring his physical condition.

Professor Halimur Rashid, Director of the Disease Control Branch of the DGHS, informed Prothom Alo on Sunday evening that the affected individual is from Narsingdi. HMPV was detected in his body on January 9. He is now receiving treatment at a hospital in Dhaka.

According to sources from the DGHS, the individual is not only infected with HMPV but also has another bacterial infection, making his condition somewhat critical.

Notably, the affected person is originally from Kishoreganj but currently resides in Narsingdi, where he contracted the virus. 

The government’s Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) has reported that two cases of HMPV infection were identified last year. The virus was first detected in the country in 2017, and it has remained present since then.

Infection with the HMPV virus causes symptoms such as fever, cold, cough, nasal congestion, and body aches. Although it resembles a common fever, children, the elderly, and elderly individuals suffering from cancer or chronic diseases are at a higher risk. This risk primarily involves developing pneumonia.