11 Mainland H7N9 cases reported

April 17, 2013

The Centre for Health Protection verified with the National Health & Family Planning Commission today seven human cases of avian influenza A (H7N9) in Shanghai and four in Zhejiang.
 
The seven cases in Shanghai involve an 89-year-old man, a 47-year-old man and five lookback cases. The 89-year-old man is receiving treatment in hospital. His nine close contacts are asymptomatic so far. The 47-year-old man is now being treated in hospital.
 
For the five lookback cases, specimens of five patients were sent for laboratory testing in March and subsequently tested positive for avian influenza A (H7N9). Among them, three recovered and two died. The 64 close contacts of these five patients and the 47-year-old man are asymptomatic.
 
The four cases in Zhejiang involve a woman aged 37 and three men aged 41, 74 and 86. They are receiving treatment in hospital.
 
As of 9pm today, 82 cases have been laboratory confirmed with avian influenza A (H7N9) in Shanghai (31 cases), Jiangsu (20 cases), Zhejiang (25 cases), Anhui (three cases), Henan (two cases) and Beijing (one case).
 
No human case of avian influenza A (H7N9) has been identified so far in Hong Kong.
 
Travellers, especially those returning from Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Henan and Beijing, with fever or respiratory symptoms should wear facial masks immediately, seek medical attention, and reveal their travel history to doctors.
 
According to the latest risk assessment by the commission, human infection of the avian influenza A (H7N9) virus is of avian origin and people are mainly infected through exposure to infected poultry or contaminated environment. Contact with infected poultry or visiting wet markets with live poultry are important risk factors of human infection of the avian influenza A (H7N9) virus.