According to the CDC, respiratory infections caused by the bacteria Mycoplasma pneumoniae have increased in the U.S. over the past six months, particularly among young children. In previous years, most pneumonia or acute bronchitis infections caused by the bacteria were found in school-aged children and teens.

Dr. Johnna Wilson, a pediatric critical care doctor with Deaconess Hospital, said mycoplasma pneumonia cases increase every three to five years.

Pneumonia cases among children are rising in Karachi, with hospitals reporting an increase in daily cases. The head of emergencies at the National Institute of Child Health (NICH) told a local news channel that the hospital is witnessing around 30 cases of pneumonia daily, while Civil Hospital Karachi is recording 10 to 15 cases per day.

Infections with the illness known as walking pneumonia have been surging across the United States at unusually high levels in young kids, according to emergency room data from many states. Doctors say most of those affected by the infection,