Infectious diseases kill 864 in China

A total of 360,240 cases of infectious diseases were reported on the Chinese mainland last month, resulting in 864 deaths, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said in a statement on Wednesday. Of the total, 240,374 cases were identified as Class B infectious diseases by the MOH, 853 of which were fatal, the ministry said. Class B infectious diseases include AIDS, tuberculosis and dysentery. Hepatitis, tuberculosis, syphilis, dysentery and gonorrhea were the top five deadliest diseases in the Class B category, contributing to 95 percent of deaths. Category C infectious diseases claimed 11 lives and accounted for the remaining cases, with infectious diarrhea, foot-and-mouth disease and mumps reported the most frequently, according to the statement. The ministry noted that a 21-year-old woman and a 31-year-old man in southwest China's Guizhou Province died from avian influenza H5N1. The two cases were not epidemiologically connected, according to the statement. The human-transmissible form of avian influenza, also known as bird flu, is an acute infectious disease in the respiratory system, mainly caused by the deadly H5N1 virus subtype. Major symptoms include high fever and pneumonia. Human cases of bird flu are usually caused by transmission from poultry to humans.