See also: 13 February 2004, 6 February 2004

Information received on 19 February 2004 from Dr Shen Zhenzhao, Director General, Bureau of Animal Husbandry and Health, Ministry of Agriculture, Beijing:

End of previous report period: 10 February 2004 (see Disease Information, 17 [7], 42, dated 13 February 2004).

End of this report period: 19 February 2004.

On 19 February 2003, the National Avian Influenza Reference Laboratory confirmed that the poultry deaths at the locations mentioned in Table 1 were not caused by the avian influenza virus.

To date, there have been a total of 49 outbreaks in 16 provinces (autonomous regions or municipalities), of which 46 (see Table 3) have been confirmed by the National Avian Influenza Reference Laboratory as subtype H5N1-caused highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), the other 3 (see Table 2) being suspected HPAI.

The cumulated number of diseased birds is 144,800, of which 127,900 have died.

Control measures during reporting period:

In accordance with the Law on Animal Epidemic Prevention, the local governments in the above-mentioned places:

- have sealed off the infected areas;

- have culled all the poultry within a 3-km radius around the foci of infection, and

- have imposed compulsory vaccination on the poultry within a 5-km radius around the foci of infection.

Up to now, 7,961,400 poultry have been culled.

Up to now, 10,211,800 poultry have been compulsorily vaccinated.

At present, the disease in the places mentioned below is under control.

* New outbreaks confirmed during the present reporting period