WHO 'baffled' by disease

2005-07-29 11:05

Beijing - China's Health Minister Gao Qiang insisted on Friday a mysterious outbreak of a pig-borne disease was "under control" despite a rising death toll and number of cases, but the World Health Organisation disagreed.

"So far, the epidemic has been under preliminary control," Gao said in a statement on the ministry's website on Friday after visiting patients in southwest China's Sichuan province, where the outbreak was discovered in June.

The death toll rose to 31 and the number of people affected increased to 152 by noon on Thursday - four more deaths and 21 more cases than the day before, according to the ministry. Twenty-seven people are in critical condition.

The World Health Organisation's (WHO) spokesperson Bob Dietz, however, said it was too soon to declare the epidemic contained.

"It's too early to call it under control because there are new cases and new deaths," Dietz said.

Preliminary laboratory tests in China indicate the outbreak is caused by the streptococcus suis bacteria, which is usually spread among pigs.

The WHO has said it is baffled because if the disease is caused by the bacteria, it would be the first time it had struck so many people at one time - raising fears it had become more virulent.

The organisation said more lab tests were needed to see if other factors might be at work.

Gao meanwhile said the emergency response system has been working effectively since the epidemic broke out.

The cause of the epidemic and the means of infection have been determined, which enable health and agricultural departments to take action to reduce the number of cases, he said.

Also, the increase in deaths and cases does not mean the epidemic is worsening as the new deaths and cases were of patients who had been hospitalised for several days, not newly infected people, the ministry said.

These cases were recently diagnosed or reported partly because of the stepped up surveillance.

- AFP