Key symptoms of mystery 'Covid-like' virus in China amid fears of it spreading

03 December 2023 , 22:58

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China is being overwhelmed by respiratory problems thought to be linked to a new virus (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Health experts across the globe have described a mysterious illness spreading through China as a "Covid-like" scenario which has now hit Europe.

Officials in two countries confirmed it has been detected after high alert levels were recorded in other countries such as neighbouring India and there are fears the UK could be next to have to deal with it. Indian officials are said to be wary of another virus spreading through their population like the outbreak of Covid in 2019.

The Covid-like pneumonia virus has been a source of chaos in China for weeks and experts now fear a new pandemic could be on the way. Officials in other countries are preparing in case the virus spreads through their population the way it did in the wake of first outbreak of coronavirus. The three key symptoms of the mystery virus have now been revealed and are a sore throat, fatigue and a lingering cough that can last for weeks or months.

The virus seems to affect children the most (AFP via Getty Images)

A big surge in respiratory diseases has been reported in China and it has been making authorities there fearful with Beijing hospitals overrun due to the number of hospitalisations. Some Indian states are now preparing their own health services to brace for the virus as a result, the Daily Star reports.

Now officials in both Denmark and Holland have confirmed that their counties are in the grip of the virus and the Dutch say that it is mainly children who are being impacted, with youngsters aged between five and 14 suffering from it rising to 130 per 100,000 in just one week.

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That figure is more than double the normal amount of winter flu-like illnesses for this time of year on average in their country. Denmark has also reported an increase of three times the amount, from 168 to 541 in the space of five weeks, with senior Statens Serum Institute researchers Hanne-Dorthe Emborg, stating: "In the past five weeks, the number of new cases has increased significantly, and we are now seeing significantly more cases than usual, and that there is widespread infection throughout the country."

Maria Van Kerkhove, acting director of the World Health Organisation’s department of epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention, said: "We asked about comparisons prior to the pandemic. And the waves that they’re seeing now, the peak is not as high as what they saw in 2018-2019. This is not an indication of a novel pathogen. This is expected. This is what most countries dealt with a year or two ago."

Adam Cailler