Tuberculosis (TB) was the top cause of death from infectious
diseases in China in the first quarter of 2006. During that period
a total of 2,068 people died from diseases, according to the
Ministry of Health.
The top five fatal infectious diseases from January to March
were tuberculosis (TB), hydrophobia, hepatitis B, AIDS and epidemic
cerebrospinal meningitis with these ?accounting for 88.74
percent of all deaths, says the ministry's quarterly epidemic
report.
TB, hepatitis B, gonorrhea, bacterial and amebic dysentery and
syphilis accounted for 87.83 percent of total cases, the report
states.
Nine human cases and six deaths as a result of bird flu were
reported during the quarter. This takes the number of human
infections in China to 16 and fatalities to 11. Ten provinces,
cities and regions have detected human cases of bird flu.
Local health authorities must continue improving surveillance
and screening for human bird flu as well as pneumonia with unknown
causes, the ministry said. Timely preventive measures had to be
taken when the ailments were detected.
The report also mentions 20,229 cases of general flu in the
quarter which is an increase of 13.22 percent over the same period
last year. The ministry has urged those in authority to improve
monitoring and prevention of flu in schools as this year most of
the outbreaks have occurred in middle and elementary schools.
(Xinhua News Agency April 12, 2006)