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Health experts have warned of the possibility of more cases of avian flu after Hong Kong reported its first human case of the illness since 2003.
But they also appealed for calm among the public, saying that the possibility of human-to-human transmission was slim.
Outbreaks of influenza occur more frequently during the Northern Hemisphere winter, and health authorities in Hong Kong and the mainland have enhanced surveillance procedures.
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government raised its alert level to "serious," meaning there is a "high risk" of people contracting the potentially fatal disease, a spokesman for the Hong Kong Department of Health said on Thursday.
But officials and experts said there was little risk of human-to-human transmission, after a 59-year-old woman tested positive for Influenza A (H5N1), a variant of avian flu. She was listed in serious condition.
Hong Kong recorded its last human case of bird flu in 2003. The region had the world's first major outbreak among humans in 1997, when six people died of a variant of the virus, which is normally confined to poultry.
"Currently the chance of a widespread avian flu outbreak among residents can almost be ruled out. Based on current information, the case in Hong Kong is isolated and involved no human-to-human transmission," said Huang Liuyu, director of the Institute for Disease Prevention and Control of the People's Liberation Army.
But he conceded that more human cases might emerge in the country during the winter.
Authorities have reported no signs of infected poultry, he said. "So chicken is safe to eat and no mass culling is needed."
In Hong Kong, experts are trying to discover the source of the infection, and Secretary for Food and Health York Chow said on Thursday that it "was more likely from the mainland."
The patient reportedly began to show symptoms, runny nose and fever, on Nov 2, one day after she returned from a 7-day trip with her husband and daughter to Shanghai, Nanjing, and Hangzhou.
She tested positive for avian flu on Wednesday and has been in quarantine since.
Her 60-year-old husband also displayed flu-like symptoms but has recovered.
Vivian Tan, press officer of the World Health Organization China Office, told China Daily on Thursday that the general risk of outbreak would not be significantly increased by an isolated case.
In Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province neighboring Hong Kong, where tens of thousands of athletes are competing at the Asian Games, organizers said the case had no effect on the event but monitoring procedures were put in place.
Questions:
1. When was the last time avian flu was reported in Hong Kong?
2. Where did a new case break out?
3. Is it fatal?
Answers:
1. 2003.
2. A 59-year-old woman in Hong Kong tested positive for Influenza A (H5N1), a variant of avian flu.
3. Hong Kong recorded its last human case of bird flu in 2003. The region had the world's first major outbreak among humans in 1997, when six people died of a variant of the virus, which is normally confined to poultry.
（中國日?qǐng)?bào)網(wǎng)英語點(diǎn)津 Helen 編輯）
About the broadcaster:
Nelly Min is an editor at China Daily with more than 10 years of experience as a newspaper editor and photographer. She has worked at major newspapers in the U.S., including the Los Angeles Times and the Detroit Free Press. She is also fluent in Korean.
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