SHENZHEN health authorities have clarified rumors that the fatal Ebola virus was in town following a human Bocavirus case that was reportedly found in the city’s airport Friday.

    The city’s health and family planning commission said Saturday in a statement that the entry-exit inspection and quarantine bureau hadn’t detected any Ebola cases, and the reported case is a 5-year-old boy infected with the Bocavirus.

    “There is some misunderstanding and panic among citizens. The Chinese names of the two diseases are a little bit similar, which may cause confusion,” said Peng Chao-qiong, an expert with the city’s disease control and prevention center.

    Bocavirus, which is transmittable through air, makes children aged 6 months to 3 years vulnerable to pneumonia, bronchitis, bronchopneumonia and other diseases, with symptoms of cough, fever, gasping, and diarrhea. Autumn is the season in which the virus occurs most often, said Peng.

    China remains on high alert against Ebola, which has killed more than 4,500 people since the world’s worst outbreak on record began in West Africa in March. The worst-hit countries have been Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, since the outbreak of the hemorrhagic fever began there in March, according to a report Friday from the World Health Organization. The virus is spread through direct contact with bodily fluids from an infected person.

    Though no cases have been reported in China yet, the National Health and Family Planning Commission has urged medical organizations nationwide to step up preparations for potential cases.

    China has also published a book on preventing and treating common diseases, highlighting the Ebola virus.

    (Xinhua)