1,336 dead in China by infectious diseases

A total of 1,336 people died of infectious diseases in the Chinese mainland in June alone while AIDS proved as the most deadly among them, the country's National Health and Family Planning Commission has said.

According to a statement issued by the commission, AIDS caused 966 deaths last month while Tuberculosis was the second-biggest killer, claiming 125 lives.

No deaths from H7N9 avian flu were reported last month, the statement said, adding there was one infection with the virus reported in east China's Jiangsu province and the patient has recovered.

It said a total of 743,216 infectious disease cases were reported in the Chinese mainland last month. Among them, six cases of cholera were reported but none of them resulted in death. Plague and cholera are categorised as Class A infectious diseases, the most serious bracket.

In addition, about 306,230 cases were identified as Class B infectious diseases. Hepatitis, tuberculosis, syphilis, dysentery and gonorrhea accounted for 93 per cent of the cases in this category, the statement said.

It added that category C infectious diseases claimed 58 lives in June, with foot-and-mouth disease, infectious diarrhoea and mumps reported the most frequently.