Respiratory Illness Cases Surge in China, Experts Attribute to Known Pathogens

CDC Director Mandy Cohen reassures that the situation is not a new or novel pathogen, but usual fluctuations of any respiratory virus season.

Respiratory illness cases, particularly among children, have spiked in China, with the country's National Health Commission attributing the increase to known pathogens and the lifting of coronavirus restrictions.
Experts suggest that China's stringent anti-COVID measures, which were dropped less than a year ago, left children's immune systems unprepared, resulting in the preponderance of younger patients.
Despite concerns from GOP lawmakers, CDC Director Mandy Cohen and other public health experts do not believe this is a new or novel pathogen, describing the situation as the usual fluctuations of any respiratory virus season.
China's National Health Commission expects cases to peak in the next 2-3 weeks, but infections could last through next spring.
Health authorities such as the WHO have repeatedly asked China for further epidemiological data.