Unidentified respiratory virus circulating in Russia

Several local media outlets, including the state-run RIA Novosti and the independent SHOT channel, have reported the spread of an unidentified respiratory virus in Russia. The main symptoms of this virus are a persistent high fever and a cough that brings up blood. Initial symptoms reported by patients include general weakness and muscle aches, similar to typical seasonal illnesses, with a sharp deterioration in clinical conditions starting on the third or fourth day after the onset of the disease. The absence of a definitive pathogen identification has resulted in the classification of these cases as ‘acute upper respiratory tract infection, unspecified.’ Some medical sources have suggested a potential link with mycoplasma pneumonia, a bacterial infection that led to a surge in hospitalisations in Russia during the latter part of last year. However, health authorities have not yet confirmed this hypothesis or disclosed the number of cases or hospital admissions.