No Reports of New Bird Flu Cases in China

by Kathy Jones on May 21, 2013 at 11:11 PM

National health authorities have said that no new human cases of the H7N9 virus have been recorded in China for a week.

One previously infected patient died in the week beginning May 13, the National Health and Family Planning Commission said in a statement late Monday, taking the total number of fatalities from the virus to 36.

Bird Flu

Bird flu (avian influenza/avian flu) is a disease caused by an influenza virus (H5N1) that primarily affects birds but can infect humans also.

But the number of confirmed cases was unchanged at 130. Of those, 72 have recovered and been discharged from hospital, it said, adding that no evidence of human-to-human transmission had been detected so far.

Experts fear the possibility of the virus mutating into a form easily transmissible between humans, with the potential to trigger a pandemic.

Flu viruses are often seasonal and much of China is experiencing warmer weather following the end of winter.

Swine Flu

Swine flu, a type of influenza caused by a new strain of the H1N1 Type A influenza virus has originated from the pigs. Winter always brings along the chills and the flu, make sure you''re safe this season.

But the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) warned that the evolution of the outbreak was still unpredictable.

"Influenza viruses constantly reinvent themselves. No one can predict the future course of this outbreak," Margaret Chan said Monday at the World Health Assembly in Geneva.

"Although the source of human infection with the virus is not yet fully understood, the number of new cases dropped dramatically following the closing of live poultry markets," she added.

China was accused of covering up the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) that killed about 800 people around the world a decade ago, but Chan thanked authorities for their close collaboration with the WHO over H7N9.

Source: AFP