In February, Chinese health authorities first reported infections with the H7N9 influenza virus, a flu strain emerging from birds. While the virus did not seem to be as virulent as previous avian strains, public-health officials were concerned that it was the first time cases of H7N9 had been documented in humans.
According to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) H7N9 report in early June, there have been 132 lab-confirmed cases of human H7N9 infection in China. The majority have been reported in middle-aged men, most of whom had some exposure to poultry, and by June, 37 people had died from the disease. Read more here.
