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Mainland reports 10th suspected flu case

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-05-24 20:20

BEIJING - Following a suspected case in east China's Zhejiang Province, the Health Ministry reported Sunday another suspected A(H1N1) influenza case in Shanghai.

The Shanghai case, the tenth of its kind on the Chinese mainland, involved a 30-year-old man who arrived in Shanghai from Australia Saturday, according to a report released by the Shanghai's municipal health bureau.

The man is currently employed by an Australian company.

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The ninth suspected case involved a 19-year-old boy who studied at the St. John's University in New York in the United States.

The boy boarded the China Eastern Airlines flight MU588 which departed from New York at 1:45 am (local time) Thursday and arrived in Shanghai at 4:30 am (Beijing time) on Friday.

He then flew from Shanghai to Wenzhou of eastern Zhejiang Province on the China Eastern Airlines flight MU5585 the same day.

The patient had a fever on Friday and went to the No.2 People's Hospital in Wenzhou on Saturday with symptoms of sore throat and coughing.His temperature was 38 degrees Celsius.

He was tested positive to A(H1N1) virus by the Wenzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Zhejiang CDC.

After treatment, the patient's temperature went back to 37 degrees Celsius and the symptoms of sore throat and coughing were "relieved evidently", according to the ministry.

The boy's close contacts including two of his family members and two health care workers are now under quarantine.

The Ministry of Health said it was now "positively" cooperating with other related departments in locating and checking those who had close contacts with the boy during the flights.

Test samples from the two patients were sent to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention for a final conclusion. The ministry has reported the two cases to the World Health Organization and relevant countries and regions.

In addition, the ministry has sent two expert teams to Shanghai and Zhejiang to help with the local medical treatment and disease control.

Earlier Sunday, the ministry confirmed another case which involved a two-year-old girl in east China's Fujian Province, who returned from the United States with her family via Hong Kong and was tested positive for the A(H1N1) flu.

The Chinese mainland now has eight confirmed A(H1N1) influenza cases with two suspected as of 19:13 pm Sunday.