XI'AN -- A man in Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi province, injured nine people on Thursday morning in a knife attack at a hospital and was detained by police.

According to police, Wang Changyu, 59, resident of the city's Chang'an district, injured nine people, including his wife, with a knife just after midnight at Hospital 521, where he was being treated.

Police sources said that Wang wanted to go to another hospital for his treatment and was refused by his wife, then he lost his control and went on a rampage.

Besides Wang's wife, other injured included two hospital guards, two medical staff and four patients. Some of the injured received emergency treatment at the hospital and were in stable condition, according to Li Shengfeng, director of the hospital's medical service office.

An unnamed eyewitness told China Daily that he saw the attacker rush out from another building of the hospital and run into the emergency ward with a knife over 20 cm long, and attacked people at random.

According to Li, the victims all received injuries on the hands and face. Seven were treated at the hospital, and one was treated at Bo'ai hospital, and one was sent home with a slight injury.

The Changyanbo police station, in the region where the hospital is located, said that Wang had been detained and he was not thought to be mentally ill.

The case was under investigation.