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Health Official Warns of More Human Infections From Bird Flu in Spring

Posted on: Saturday, 11 March 2006, 09:00 CST

Health official warns of more human infections from bird flu in spring

BEIJING, March 10 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese health official said on Friday that there is a possibility for more bird flu outbreaks and human infections this spring, as migratory birds are starting to move to the south, posing threats to domestic fowls and humans.

"The whole health system is on high alert. Enhanced surveillance and preventative measures have been taken," Mao Qun'an, spokesman for the Ministry of Health, told a press conference.

Mao also said that mass vaccination of poultry is not contradictory to the early detection of human cases. "Vaccination of poultry is crucial to prevent human infection from bird flu from occurring," he said, but admitted that it makes detection of human infection "harder".

China has reported 15 human cases of bird flu, of which 10 have died. It also reported more than 30 bird flu outbreaks in poultry since last year.

A total of 536 people died of infectious diseases in China in February, according to the latest epidemic report released by the ministry on Friday.

Four Chinese poeple contracted bird flu in February and one of them found in central China's Hunan Province died, the report said.

Tuberculosis (TB), hepatitis B, gonorrhea, lues and bacterial and amoebic dysenteries accounted for 88.46 percent of the total incidences.

The top five killer diseases last month were TB, hydrophobia, hepatitis B, AIDS and epidemic cerebrospinal meningitis, accounting for 89.31 percent of all reported deaths.

Source: Xinhua News Agency - CEIS

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