On October 10, the Ministry of Health disclosed details regarding infectious diseases nationwide for September 2007.

In the Chinese mainland a total of 349,630 cases were reported in categories A and B infection, resulting in 735 deaths.

Cases reported accounted for all 23 types of categories A and B infectious diseases excepting plague, SARS, poliomyelitis, human bird flu, and diphtheria.

The most prevalent disease reported was pulmonary tuberculosis (TB), followed by hepatitis B, dysentery, syphilis and gonorrhea. These five diseases accounted for 87.45 percent of the reported cases.

Rabies was recorded as the deadliest infectious disease with TB, AIDS, hepatitis B and epidemic encephalitis B also causing a number of fatalities. 91.56 percent of deaths could be ascribed to the above diseases.

136,229 cases of category C infectious diseases were recorded, leading to 6 deaths. The top three cases were infectious diarrhea, acute hemorrhagic conjunctivitis, and epidemic mumps, accounting for 97.41 percent of the illnesses in this category.

(Ministry of Health, October 12, 2007)

Note:

Infectious diseases are classified into A, B, and C in China based on nature, transmission channel, and speed. The most pandemic diseases – including plague, cholera, and SARS – fall into Category A. Category B diseases spread in less easy channels and at a lower speed, including typhoid fever, dengue fever, and scarlatina. Category C contains the least infectious, including tuberculosis, snail fever, mumps, and leprosy.