Guangdong reports more H7N9 cases, Hong Kong warns against bringing in meat or poultry
The Health and Family Planning Commission of Guangdong Province (GDHFPC) is reporting two additional human cases of avian influenza A(H7N9), bringing the province total to 181, or 30 percent of all cases reported on the Mainland.
Image/CDC
According to the GDHFPC, the two male patients, aged 62 in Foshan and aged 57 in Jiangmen, were hospitalized for management in critical and serious condition respectively.
The activity of avian influenza viruses in the Mainland remains high this winter. The cumulative total number of human H7N9 avian flu cases reported in China since Mar. 2013 now stands at 599.
Since last November, four out of 10 human cases of avian influenza A(H7N9) in China have been reported from Guangdong Province.
The remaining cases in other areas were from Zhejiang (156 cases), Jiangsu (70 cases), Fujian (58 cases), Shanghai (45 cases), Anhui (24 cases), Hunan (24 cases), Xinjiang (10 cases), Jiangxi (nine cases), Shandong (six cases), Beijing (five cases), Henan (four cases), Guangxi (three cases), Jilin (two cases), Guizhou and Hebei (one case each).
The Hong Kong Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH), in addition to advising the public to avoid live poultry markets in any travels to the mainland, they are reminding residents not to bring any game, meat or poultry into Hong Kong without official health certificate issued by the food authority of the place of origin and / or without prior written permission granted by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department.
Offenders of the ordinance shall be liable on conviction to a fine of $50,000 and to imprisonment for six months.
Avian influenza A (H7N9) is an influenza (flu) virus found in birds that does not normally infect humans. However, in spring of 2013, China began reporting infections with the virus in people. Most of these infections have been associated with contact with infected poultry or contaminated environments (such as poultry markets) in China.
Early symptoms are consistent with seasonal flu and may include fever, cough, sore throat,muscle aches and fatigue, loss of appetite, and runny or stuffy nose. However, infection with this virus often causes severe respiratory illness and, in some cases, death.