China reports 4th H7N9 case since Sept

HANGZHOU - A 64-year-old farmer in East China's Zhejiang province has been confirmed to have contracted H7N9 bird flu, bringing the total number of avian influenza cases in China to four this autumn, local health authorities said on Saturday.

The farmer, surnamed Ren from Jiaxing city, was confirmed as having the disease on Nov 4 after she began showing symptoms on Oct 30. She is now in a serious condition, according to the Zhejiang Provincial Health Department.

The case follows two others also in Zhejiang province confirmed on Oct 15 and 23, and another in southern Guangdong province confirmed on Nov 5.

China had reported 134 cases by the end of August, with 45 fatalities, according to the National Health and Family Planning Commission.

No new cases were reported on the Chinese mainland in September.