Here we go again?

According to a ProMED alert, an “outbreak of pneumonia” is spreading throughout China.

“Children’s hospitals in Beijing, Liaoning and other places were overwhelmed with sick children, and schools and classes were on the verge of suspension,” the alert read.

“The children are presenting with unusual symptoms that include inflammation in the lungs and a high fever – but no cough or other symptoms usually associated with flu, RSV and other respiratory illnesses,” Daily Mail reports.

“Let me remind you all that it was also ProMed in December of 2019 that first alerted the world to a virus outbreak in China that would later be called COVID,” investigative reporter Laura Loomer stated.

“China is really trying to do a repeat of 2020, aren’t they? Weird how this gets released one week after Joe Biden met with Xi Jinping in San Francisco,” she continued.

From ProMED:

In the early morning, Beijing Children’s Hospital was still overcrowded with parents and children whose children had pneumonia and came to seek treatment. Mr. [W], a Beijing citizen: “Many, many are hospitalized. They don’t cough and have no symptoms. They just have a high temperature (fever) and many develop pulmonary nodules.”

The situation in Liaoning Province is also serious. The lobby of Dalian Children’s Hospital is full of sick children receiving intravenous drips. There are also queues of patients at the traditional Chinese medicine hospitals and the central hospitals. A staff member of Dalian Central Hospital said: “Patients have to wait in line for 2 hours, and we are all in the emergency department and there are no general outpatient clinics.”

Some school classes have even been canceled completely. Not only are all students sick, but teachers are also infected with pneumonia. …

Mr. [W], a Beijing citizen: “Now you are not allowed to report to school. If you have any symptoms such as fever, cold, cough and then you are hospitalized, you can ask for leave…”

Since China stopped adhering to the “zero” policy at the beginning of the year [2023], epidemics such as influenza, mycoplasma, and bronchopneumonia have broken out from time to time. …

“It is not at all clear when this outbreak started as it would be unusual for so many children to be affected so quickly. The report does not say that any adults were affected suggesting some exposure at the schools. ProMED awaits more definitive information about the etiology and scope of this concerning illness in China,” the alert continued.

“It is too early to project whether this could be another pandemic but as a wise influenza virologist once said to me: ‘The pandemic clock is ticking, we just do not know what time it is,'” it added.

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Charlie Kirk writes:

A new “mystery pneumonia” is tearing through China’s schools. Hospitals are reportedly overwhelmed in Beijing and Liaoning with sick children and many classes are already cancelled.

Symptoms include inflammation in the lungs and a high fever but without a cough or other symptoms that normally come with respiratory illnesses.

The alert came Tuesday via ProMed, a global surveillance system that monitors outbreaks, and it was a ProMed in December of 2019 that first alerted the world to a virus outbreak in China that would later be called COVID.

Why is it always China?

From Daily Mail:

The alert was issued late on Tuesday via ProMed – a large, publicly available global surveillance system that monitors infectious diseases.

It was a ProMed notification back in December 2019 that brought a mystery virus, later given the name of Covid, to the attention of many doctors and scientists, including officials at the World Health Organization.

The source for the alert was a report by the Taiwanese outlet FTV News, which added that ‘parents questioned whether the authorities were covering up the epidemic.’

China was roundly criticized for covering up the original SARS epidemic in 2003 and the Covid pandemic in late 2019 – which were both novel viruses that cause pneumonia.

But the new outbreak could be related to Mycoplasma pneumoniae, also known as walking pneumonia, which is reportedly growing in China as the country goes into its first winter without strict Covid lockdowns in place.

The US and UK also saw spikes in infections like RSV and flu after pandemic rules lifted.

FTV News reported that Beijing Children’s Hospital was still overcrowded in the early morning Wednesday.

‘The situation in Liaoning Province is also grim,’ FTV News said.

The lobby of Dalian Children’s Hospital is reportedly full of sick children receiving intravenous drips.

There are also long queues of patients at the Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital and the Central Hospital.

A staff member of Dalian Central Hospital said: ‘Patients have to wait in line for two hours, and we are all in the emergency department and there are no general outpatient clinics.’

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