A 29-year-old man had been confirmed as infected with bird flu in southwest China's Guizhou Province, the sixth case of human bird flu found in China this year, local authorities said Sunday.

The man, surnamed Zhou, fell ill on Jan. 15 in Guiyang City, the provincial capital. He was then sent to Guizhou Provincial People's Hospital, said a provincial health department official.

The man is still in a critical condition, the official said.

Zhou tested positive for the H5N1 strain of avian influenza, according to the test result on Sunday from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

Guizhou has launched an emergency response against the virus. Those who had close contact with the patient are under medical observation. No one has been found ill so far.

China's Ministry of Health has reported the case to the World Health Organization and informed the health authorities of the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions.

(Xinhua News Agency January 25, 2009)