China confirms second mainland swine flu case

Health officials in China today confirmed the country’s second mainland swine flu case in a week – a student who recently returned from Canada – and stepped up screening for domestic travellers.

The 19-year-old man, identified only by his surname, Mr Lu, was being treated in isolation in the eastern city of Jinan and his condition was improving, the Health Ministry said.

Lab results today from the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention showed Mr Lu was positive for the Type A H1N1 virus, the ministry said.

Authorities were searching for people who may have come into contact with Mr Lu, who arrived in Beijing on Friday and left the capital on Monday by train for Jinan while showing flu symptoms. However, tracking down domestic train passengers is likely to be impossible because registration is not required to buy tickets.

Eight of the 44 passengers who were in the same train car have reported to health authorities and were placed under observation at their homes, state broadcaster CCTV said.

Mr Lu arrived in Beijing on board Air Canada flight AC029 on Friday and by Monday had a fever of 102.2 degrees Fahrenheit along with a sore throat and headache.

He left Beijing by train the same day and was taken to an infectious disease hospital on arrival, the ministry said. It did not say which Canadian city he came from, but the flight originated in Toronto and flies to Beijing via Vancouver.

Mr Lu is mainland China’s second case of swine flu, following a 30-year-old student who recently returned from the US and is expected to make a full recovery.

China said yesterday it had tracked down and quarantined about 350 passengers who had travelled with him, while the Beijing municipal health authority said 103 guests at a hotel where the student stayed were told to remain there for a week of observation.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China has begun requiring air travellers to fill in health declarations before boarding domestic flights.

Airports must now check the temperatures of transiting passengers who arrive on international flights, the authority said.

At the start of May, Hong Kong reported a case of swine flu in a 25-year-old Mexican who flew to the city via Shanghai. He was the first confirmed case in Asia.