Metapnuemovirus

I mentioned in another thread a few weeks ago that I had gotten sick. It was right up there in the top two of the viral illnesses that I have ever had. I went to the hospital and was diagnosed with acute viral pharyngitis. That seemed a little incomplete to me because it said little more than that I had a sore throat and that it was viral, as opposed to bacterial. I already knew I had a sore throat because it hurt. That seemed more like a symptom than a diagnosis.

Anyhow, it lasted more than three weeks. After three or four days, I felt like I was getting over it, but the next day it was worse than ever. In order of discomfort, I had...

• a headache
• sore throat
• coughing, of the type that resembled croup
• high mucus production
• difficulty sleeping while prone
• fever
• stridor

However, today I received an amended diagnosis based on the same lab tests that had determined a diagnosis of acute viral pharyngitis. What I had was Metapneumovirus (hMPV), which is described as a newly identified virus that can result in bronchiolitis, pneumonia, and influenza.

While the paper says that it is common during infancy and early childhood, nearly everyone I know of around here has had it, including my current and previous doctors and their spouses, which is probably why they reexamined my lab results.

Other than walking alone on the non-rainy days that we've had, and going into our backyard, today was the first time I've been out of the house and around other people in more than three weeks, except for my trip to the hospital. Today, I am feeling completely over it

Frankly, I'm surprised they did actual testing and didn't just mark it down as Covid unless, of course, this new virus might prove to be a payoff for local medical facilities since it's been running rampant here, unlike Covid.

 

Interesting. I've never heard of it, but since I don't have kids and have never been prone to this kind of stuff [knock on wood] I wouldn't have a way to be exposed to it. That's interesting that you know so many people who have had it, were actually tested for it, and who found out what it was. It must be rough in order for folks to not just ride it out...unless COVID paranoia is driving people to get tested when they normally would not have bothered.

The Cleveland Clinic has a pretty thorough article on it. They say that Dutch scientists identified it in 2001, so this does not sound like a COVID variant. It says that one of the ways to reduce the risk of getting this is by "Having annual health exams and staying up to date on vaccinations." I've never been offered a vax for this, to my knowledge. I had no idea one existed.

 

The paperwork from the hospital states that "Human Metapneumovirus (hMPV) is a newly identified respiratory virus." Of course, I don't know how long that wording has been in the standard informational sheet. It also doesn't mention a vaccine, even under the heading of "What can be done to prevent the spread of it."

 

As an update, I have been sick for more than a month now. Last week, I felt pretty much okay but last night I got a sore throat again, and today, I have a headache and a sore throat, which are pretty much the same symptoms that I had before, when they couldn't agree on what the problem was. My wife is sick again, too. Whatever it is, she always gets it first and then gives it to me.

In my opinion, this occurs because she's a hugger. If she hasn't seen someone in a day or two, she feels the need to hug them and, with her recovery center, she comes across a lot of people. On the other hand, I didn't grow up in a hugging family, so that's not something that I do unless someone insists.

Right now, I don't feel nearly as bad as I did a few weeks ago, but then, it's just starting out again.

Whatever this is, pretty much everyone I know in town has been sick over the past month or so. I've been tested for Covid twice, and they also ran another antibodies test, and I haven't been exposed to Covid. So, if it's MPV, that's not supposed to last this long.

I'm trying to keep up with my blog posts, newspaper articles, and my regular directory job, but I spend a lot of time sleeping because I can't sleep at night. While I make a point of popping into the forum often, I haven't been feeling up to trying to think of new topics and stuff.

 

Wow. This sucks. I assume your experience with this (the recurrence) pretty much mirrors everyone else's in town. I don't believe I've ever had anything hang on this long or resurface like this.