A 36-year-old man from China’s Henan province died of H7N9 bird flu, local health authorities said Saturday.
According to a statement of Henan provincial health and family planning commission, the man died on Wednesday some three weeks after infection, state news agency Xinhua reported.
The local authorities are monitoring the health conditions of 16 people who had close contact with the infected man.
China has entered high season for bird flu. Earlier this week, China’s National Health and Family Planning Commission called for extra efforts to control and prevent the spread of the H7N9 avian flu virus.
Last week, several cases of H7N9 virus were registered across China. A 77-year-old patient died on January 5 in the eastern Shandong province, and a 62-year-old man died in Hong Kong the following day.
On Thursday, a 59-year-old man from Yuanjiang City in Hunan province was diagnosed with bird flu.
On Friday, the first case of a human infection with bird flu was registered in China’s autonomous region of Macau. The first case of a human contracting avian influenza virus of the H7N9 strain was registered in China in March 2013.
China has imposed bans on poultry imports from affected countries. Curbs are already in place against some 60 nations, including Japan and South Korea.
Source: Sputnik
