GUANGZHOU: Guangzhou No 8 People's Hospital yesterday confirmed that it had not admitted any patients suspected of having bird flu or SARS in the past month, despite reports from Hong Kong media claiming otherwise.

Hospital president Tang Xiaoping said yesterday that the hospital had not admitted any patients suffering from fevers whose cause was unknown, which could be a symptom of bird flu or SARS infection.

The Guangzhou No 8 People's Hospital is the city's largest hospital for treating contagious diseases.

Tang's remarks came in response to media reports from Hong Kong that said the hospital had isolated several patients suspected of having been infected with bird flu or SARS and that hospital staff had been on high alert for contagious diseases.

Some Hong Kong-based media, including the Sing Tao Daily, reported over the weekend that the Guangzhou No 8 People's Hospital had "segregated a dozen of patients" suffering from unknown illnesses.

But the newspaper didn't specify its sources, quoting only an unnamed man "who answered the telephone (at) the hospital". "I don't know how they got the information, but I can assure you that their report is absolutely a rumor," Tang said. "Those journalists who do not believe us are encouraged to do an interview and take photos by themselves, on the site."

The hospital admitted patients suffering from measles and dengue fever who had high fevers late last year, he said, adding they had all recovered after receiving treatment.

Many of the patients at the hospital are suffering from liver diseases, AIDS or other contagious diseases, he said.

'Groundless rumor'

"The rumor being spread by some Hong Kong media is groundless," Xiong Yuanda, deputy director and spokesperson of Guangzhou Health Bureau, told China Daily yesterday.

"Not a single hospital, including the Guangzhou No. 8 People's Hospital, has admitted bird flu or SARS patients. And the city's disease control and prevention centre has reported no signs of the recurrence of bird flu or SARS."

The official said Guangzhou had set up a mechanism to report epidemics. Hospitals that receive patients suffering from unknown contagious diseases must immediately report to local health authorities.

The mechanism was established in 2003 after SARS broke out in Guangdong.

(China Daily 01/23/2007 page5)