A SHENZHEN woman has been infected with the deadly H7N9 strain of bird flu, the only confirmed case in Shenzhen since May, the health authority confirmed Monday night.

    The 35-year-old, surnamed Yang who is a domestic worker in Dalang Subdistrict, Longhua New Area, is fighting for her life. She started feeling unwell Dec. 20 and visited a community hospital for treatment. A week later she went to the Longhua branch of Shenzhen People’s Hospital and was tested for the H7N9 virus.

    Her family transferred her to another hospital after her condition worsened Sunday — before the result of the test was revealed — and then admitted her to another hospital in Guangzhou, the Guangzhou Respiratory Diseases Research Institute.

    The positive test, carried out by officials from Shenzhen Disease Control and Prevention Center (CDC), was later confirmed by a second test carried out by Guangdong CDC.

    By 6 p.m. yesterday, all the 69 people who had come into close contact with the woman had been put under medical observation.

    Yang’s youngest daughter – the only one of the 69 who showed flu symptoms – has been taking the antiviral drug, Oseltamivir, as a precaution. A throat swab test is being carried out on the daughter but the result is not yet known.

    About 20 percent of samples collected from live poultry stalls of the Longsheng market near her residence tested H7N9 positive, Shenzhen CDC said yesterday. It warned there is a risk of sporadic infections.

    The latest confirmed infection came only days after a 68-year-old Hong Kong woman was found to have fallen ill with the virus after visiting Shenzhen and eating cooked chicken.

    She visited a wet market in Bao’an District with two friends Dec. 13. But her friends did not show any symptoms after the 10-day bird flu incubation period passed.

    (Zhang Yang)