Beijing reports 10 H7N9 cases this year

BEIJING -- Beijing has reported 10 human H7N9 avian flu cases in 2017 so far, according to the Beijing Center for Disease Prevention and Control on Tuesday.

The latest two cases were reported on April 5. The two patients had contact with live poultry. One of them died of the infection on April 8 after treatment failed. The other is still being treated in a hospital and is in stable condition.

Beijing has launched environmental monitoring in six districts involved in agriculture.

H7N9 is a bird flu strain first reported to have infected humans in China in March 2013. Infections are most likely to occur in winter and spring.

Disease control and prevention experts have said that the H7N9 virus was not transmitted from person to person.

Experts recommend that people avoid contact with dead and live poultry, and only buy poultry with quarantine certificates.