Greece has confirmed its first case of Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) in a 71-year-old man, the national news agency AMNA reported on Wednesday.

The patient, who had pneumonia and underlying health conditions, is in intensive care in Thessaloniki, a northern port city. The National Public Health Organisation has advised medical staff to follow Covid-19 protocols and maintain strict hygiene measures.

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Gkikas Magiorkinis, associate professor of epidemiology at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, reassured the public, saying there is no need to panic as HMPV is a known virus that has circulated for decades and is not considered highly dangerous, Xinhua news agency reported.

On Tuesday, the Indonesian Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin had announced that the country has detected infections of the respiratory virus HMPV, but assured the public that the disease is not dangerous.

“Our report shows that several children have been infected. We are closely monitoring the situation. However, this is not a new disease; it has been present in Indonesia since 2001, and we have not observed any serious impacts caused by this virus,” Sadikin stated in a written announcement published on the ministry’s official website.

He noted that the symptoms are similar to those of a common flu, and urged the public to maintain a healthy and hygienic environment.

“Anyone can catch the flu if their immune system is weakened. However, our bodies are capable of handling this virus. We need to keep our immune systems strong by ensuring we get enough rest and engage in regular physical exercise,” he said.

Discovered in 2001, HMPV is in the Pneumoviridae family along with Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV). Broader use of molecular diagnostic testing has increased identification and awareness of HMPV as an important cause of upper and lower respiratory infection, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

HMPV can cause upper and lower respiratory disease in people of all ages, especially among young children, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems, according to the CDC.

Surveillance data from the CDC’s the National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System shows HMPV to be most active during late winter and spring in temperate climates.

Symptoms commonly associated with HMPV include cough, fever, nasal congestion, and shortness of breath, according to the CDC.

Unlike Covid-19 and the flu, there is no vaccine for HMPV or antiviral drugs to treat it. Instead, doctors care for seriously ill people by tending to their symptoms.