Bollywood actress Kiara Advani, who is gearing up for the release of Game Changer with Ram Charan, has been hospitalised in Mumbai. Due to her health issues, she was unable to attend the film’s promotional event in Goregaon on Saturday (January 4).

The actress was originally scheduled to attend the press meet of Game Changer with Ram Charan, however, she was unable to make it. During the event, the host announced that she has been hospitalised but no further details regarding the cause of Kiara’s illness have been disclosed as of now.

The actress appeared on the Weekend Ka Vaar episode of Salman Khan’s reality show, Bigg Boss 18, on Friday. She also interacted with the contestants and assigned them interesting tasks.

Several pictures and videos of the actress from the sets of the show have been doing the rounds on social media.

New Delhi, Jan 4: The Covid-like Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV), currently spreading in China is just a ‘winter occurrence,’ is less severe, and is spreading on a smaller scale, said the country’s foreign ministry spokesperson.

The statement comes as photos and videos emerged on social media showing hospitals in China swamped with people amid rising cases of HMPV – causing respiratory illness –, and raising serious concerns of another pandemic akin to Covid-19.

Speaking to reporters, China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning called it an annual occurrence in winter and assured that the country is safe to travel.

“Respiratory infections tend to peak during the winter season in the Northern Hemisphere. Recently, the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration of China held a press conference to share information about the prevention and control of respiratory diseases in China during the wintertime,” said Ning.

“The diseases appear to be less severe and spread on a smaller scale compared with the previous year,” she added.

Further, reassuring the safety of citizens and tourists, she noted: “I can assure you that the Chinese government cares about the health of Chinese citizens and foreigners coming to China”, adding that “It is safe to travel in China”.

Over the last few days, there has been a sudden spike in respiratory illnesses across China, reminding people of a similar surge before Covid was confirmed.

The media in neighbouring countries like Indonesia, India, and Japan also cautioned its citizens to be aware of the situation in China and take needed precautions.

Meanwhile, Indian health officials have also assured that there is no need to worry.

“The spread of HMPV in China is like any other respiratory virus,” said Dr Atul Goel, Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), while speaking to the media “There is no need for alarm, about the present situation,” he added.

The expert noted that the disease can lead to “flu-like symptoms,” in the elderly and very young children.

HMPV was first discovered in 2001 and is part of the Pneumoviridae family along with the Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

The virus can lead to upper and lower respiratory disease in people of all ages. Young children, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems are majorly affected.

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), symptoms commonly associated with HMPV include cough, fever, nasal congestion, and shortness of breath.

It reportedly has an incubation period of between three to five days. Wearing a mask, washing hands frequently, and increasing immunity can help prevent the disease.

HMPV had in 2023 been detected in the Netherlands, Britain, Finland, Australia, Canada, the US, and China.

Mumbai: The BMC will soon start India’s first palliative care ward for tuberculosis patients at its hospital in Sewri. Palliative care is considered a necessary component in the global strategy against TB but was thus far missing in India, a senior health official said.

Sources informed the FPJ that the ward will be housed in the new building and will have an equal number of beds for both men and women. The official added that they are finalising the guidelines for eligibility.

Renowned pulmonologist and epidemiologist Dr Lancelot Pinto, PD Hinduja Hospital-Mahim, said palliative care across all disciplines in medicine is always a good idea, especially in diseases that leave patients “with a lot of disability and scarring”.

He said, “In India, we often see TB patients in an advanced stage, needing palliative care. The treatment is not just about curing or killing bacteria, but also taking care of symptoms like breathlessness.” He, however, clarified that palliative care does not mean end-of-life.

Pinto said palliative care is helpful when TB is diagnosed late and doctors know that the patient’s lungs are not going to heal and are badly scarred.

Lauding the BMC’s plan, public health specialist and convenor of Survivors Against TB, , Chapal Mehra, said such a centre is the need of the hour in a city like Mumbai where the TB burden is very high.

Sewri TB Hospital, which is officially called Group of TB Hospitals, is Asia’s largest TB hospital. It was inaugurated in 1942 and has 1,000 beds. At any given point, it has more than 800-bed occupancy; 240 beds are reserved for multi-drug resistant TB patients.

New TB cases in Mumbai have reached pre-pandemic levels for the second consecutive year, with 63,644 new cases recorded in 2023. The increase is attributed to better search and diagnostics efforts by health officials.