ONE MORE COMFIRMED AND ONE SUSPECTED INFLUENZA A(H1N1) CASE IN CHINA

BY VINCENT LOW

BEIJING, May 24 (Bernama)-- China's health ministry today announced another
confirmed case of influenza A (H1N1) in Fujian and a suspected case in Zhejiang
Province.

Following the announcement, the total number patients affected by the
disease in China has now risen to eight.

The suspected patient from Changle city in Fuzhou, after being diagnosed
with real-time RT PCR test, showed positive reaction to the Influenza H1N1
virus.

The Fujian Health authority is treating the patient while action is being
taken to trace those who had been in contact with the patient.

The patient's temperature is stable.

Eight persons including patient's family and the taxi driver who sent him
home from the airport were now under close medical monitoring but no abnormality
was recorded.

The health authority had also successfully traced 30 persons out of 38 who
had shared the same cabin with the patient in the KA662 flight, but eight others
had left China.

Those who had been traced were still under close medical monitoring, but no
abnormality had been reported.

Meanwhile, the Ministry also announced that they had received a report on
one suspected case of influenza A (H1N1) in the Zhejiang Province.

The 19-year-old student, who was studying in the United States, returned to
Wenham on a connecting flight from Shanghai where he arrived from New York at
4.30am last Friday.

The patient is said to have a fever and showed symptoms of sore throat,
cough and respiratory infection later that day and was admitted to the Peoples'
Hospital, Wenzhou. The hospital's preliminary test on the patient found him
positive of the H1N1 virus.
-- BERNAMA