The attention being paid to a Chinese outbreak of a virus often confused with flu is a sign that respiratory infection tracking is improving.

Have you seen reports about a “new” virus spreading in China? HMPV was first identified in 2001. Here are the symptoms it causes.

The illness is "typically mild", said The Independent, but it can lead to "severe complications such as pneumonia, particularly in infants, the elderly, and those with weakened immune systems".