Six New Cases of Human Infection with H7N9 Virus are Reported to WHO

Saturday, March 29, 2014
By Paul Martin

Infectioncontroltoday.com
Mar. 28, 2014

Between March 20 and March 25, 2014, the National Health and Family Planning Commission (NHFPC) of China notified the World Health Organization (WHO) of six additional laboratory-confirmed cases of human infection with avian influenza A(H7N9) virus.

Details of the case reported on March 20 are as follows:
A 78-year-old man living in Shaoyang City, Hunan Province became ill on March 12, was admitted to a hospital on March 18 and is currently in severe condition.

Details of the case reported on March 21 are as follows:
A 32-year-old man living in Shenzhen City, Guangdong Province became ill on March 18, was admitted to a hospital on March 21 and is currently in severe condition.

Details of the cases reported on March 24 are as follows:
An 82-year-old man from Chuzhou City, Anhui Province became ill on March 10 and was admitted to hospital the same day. He is currently in critical condition. The patient had a history of exposure to poultry.

A 62-year-old man from Shantou City, Guangdong Province became ill on Marc 14 and was admitted to hospital on March 19. He is currently in critical condition.

Details of the cases reported on March 25 are as follows:
A 49-year-old man from Shenzhen City, Guangdong Province became ill on March 15, was admitted to a hospital on March 23 and is currently in critical condition. The patient had a history of exposure to poultry.

A 58-year-old man from Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province became ill on March 12, was admitted to a hospital on March 19 and is currently in critical condition. The patient had a history of exposure to poultry.

The Chinese government has taken the following surveillance and control measures: strengthen surveillance and situation analysis; reinforce case management and treatment; and conduct risk communication with the public and release information.

The previous report of avian influenza A(H7N9) virus detection in live poultry exported from mainland China to Hong Kong SAR shows the potential for the virus to spread through movement of live poultry, at this time there is no indication that international spread of avian influenza A(H7N9) has occurred. However as the virus infection does not cause signs of disease in poultry, continued surveillance is needed. Further sporadic human cases of avian influenza A(H7N9) infection are expected in affected and possibly neighboring areas.

Should human cases from affected areas travel internationally, their infection may be detected in another country during or after arrival. If this were to occur, community level spread is unlikely as the virus does not have the ability to transmit easily among humans. Until the virus adapts itself for efficient human-to-human transmission, the risk of ongoing international spread of H7N9 virus by travelers is low.

WHO advises that travelers to countries with known outbreaks of avian influenza should avoid poultry farms, or contact with animals in live bird markets, or entering areas where poultry may be slaughtered, or contact with any surfaces that appear to be contaminated with feces from poultry or other animals. Travelers should also wash their hands often with soap and water. Travelers should follow good food safety and good food hygiene practices.

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