China confirms its 2nd human death of bird flu
24/11/2005 8:27
The Ministry of Health yesterday confirmed another human death from the
H5N1 bird flu in east China's Anhui Province.
This is the third
confirmed human case of bird flu reported in China, and the second confirmed
death.
A 35-year-old female farmer surnamed Xu in Xiuning County of
Anhui developed fever and pneumonia-like symptoms on November 11 after coming
into contact with sick and dead poultry.
She died on November 22.
Tests on the woman for the H5N1 virus were positive, according to
China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
The ministry has
reported the new confirmed human case to the World Health Organization,
according to WHO officials in Beijing.
It has also informed Hong Kong
and Macau and some other countries.
On November 16, China confirmed its
first two human cases and one suspected case of H5N1 bird flu.
The two
confirmed cases involve a nine-year-old boy in Hunan Province, central China,
and a 24-year-old woman farmer in Zongyang County of Anhui Province.
The
boy has been discharged from hospital after recovery. The woman died on November
10.
The boy's 12-year-old sister, who had similar symptoms as her
brother and died on October 17, is still considered a suspected human case.
"There is no proof of human-to-human transmission of bird flu in the
world so far," said Chen Xianyi, head of the contingency office of the Ministry
of Health.
The Agriculture Ministry also reported a bird flu outbreak
yesterday in Miquan City, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
China has
reported 25 bird flu outbreaks this year and has culled millions of poultry and
intensified prevention and control efforts. Vice Minister of Agriculture Yin
Chengjie said on Monday that China is facing a "severe" situation in fighting
bird flu.
The government vowed last week to vaccinate all 14 billion
poultry in the country to fight the epidemic.
On Tuesday, the State Food
and Drug Administration approved its home-made human bird flu vaccine for
clinical tests, saying pre-clinical trials show the vaccine is fairly safe and
effective.
Xinhua
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