A nine-year-old girl in east China's
Zhejiang Province and a 26-year-old woman farmer in east
China's
Anhui Province were confirmed to be infected with H5N1 bird
flu, reported the Ministry of Health on Saturday.
The Zhejiang girl, surnamed You, lives in Anji County. She
showed symptoms of fever and pneumonia on Feb. 10 and has been
hospitalized. She is now in critical condition, said a report
released by the ministry.
According to investigation, You visited relatives twice in
Guangde County of Anhui Province before she fell ill. During her
visits, chickens raised at her relatives' homes got sick and some
died.
The exact source of You's infection is under further
investigation, said the ministry.
You's samples tested H5N1 positive by both the Zhejiang
provincial center for disease control and prevention (CDC) and
China's national CDC.
The other new case in Anhui is from Yingshang County, and the
patient is identified by the surname Wang. She developed fever and
pneumonia symptoms on Feb. 11. The report says she is also in
critical condition.
Wang had contact with sick and dead poultry, according to
investigation. The local agricultural department has isolated H5N1
virus strain from samples of dead chickens in Yingshang County,
said the ministry.
Wang's samples tested H5N1 positive by both the Anhui provincial
CDC and the national CDC.
The two patients have been confirmed to be infected with bird
flu in accordance with the standards of the World Health
Organization (WHO) and the Chinese official standards, said the
ministry.
Those having close contacts with You and Wang have been put
under medical observation by local health authorities. So far, no
abnormal symptoms have been reported.
The ministry has reported the new cases to the WHO and the
regions of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, as well as several
countries.
These cases brought the total number of human cases of bird flu
in China to 14. Previously, the country reported 12 cases, in which
eight patients died and the remaining four have been discharged
from hospital.
In Yingshang County of Anhui, inspection teams from the Ministry
of Agriculture and the provincial agricultural authorities found 13
chickens died in Jitai Village on Feb. 22. H5N1 virus were isolated
from samples of four dead chickens by the national bird flu
reference laboratory on Saturday.
The local government has culled more than 200 fowls in the area
and intensified prevention measures, according to sources with the
Ministry of Agriculture, which noted that the epidemic is now under
control.
A total of 170 human cases of bird flu involving 92 deaths have
been reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) by Feb. 20,
according to the WHO.
Chinese health officials have suspected that some cases of human
infection of bird flu were caused by environmental
contamination.
The human cases found in areas where no outbreak of bird flu in
animals had been reported were most likely caused by environmental
contamination by sick or dead birds, said Mao Qun'an, spokesman for
the Ministry of Health, at a press conference earlier this
month.
The official also said there is no evidence to suggest that
China's bird flu virus has mutated to a form that can spread
between humans, as studies show the avian flu virus isolated from
China's human cases still bears distinct avian features far
different from the human flu virus.?
22 mln fowls culled last year to curb bird
flu
China culled 22,571,200 fowls in 2005 to curb bird flu, said
China's Agriculture Minister Du Qinglin, who also warned the public
against a possible massive outbreak of this lethal epidemic.
Last year about 163,100 fowls were found to have infected the
H5N1 virus, 154,600 of which died of the pandemic, said the
minister when briefing the Standing Committee of the 10th National
People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature on Saturday.
Last year, China reported 31 highly pathogenic avian influenza
outbreaks in poultry and one in migratory birds.
"The outbreaks hit 13 provinces and 32 counties, but all of them
were effectively controlled without any large-scale virus
spreading," Du said.
"In view of the current situation, the possibility of a massive
bird flu outbreak could not be ruled out," Du warned.
He said all agricultural departments would be on high alert,
stick to consistent epidemic monitoring, diagnosing and reporting,
and strengthen poultry vaccinating and virus testing.
Chinese farmers raised about 15 billion poultry in 2005, or 21
percent of the world's total, Du said, adding that raising poultry
is one of the main income sources for the farmers.
(Xinhua News Agency February 26, 2006)