A 19-year-old man has contracted bird flu in China, the country's Ministry of Health said Saturday, according to UPI. The man, identified only by his surname Cheng, is a soldier in the Chinese military and is being treated at an undisclosed military hospital in China, reported Xinhua, China's official news agency. Chinese health officials did not list his condition or disclose where Cheng was stationed in China or indicate how he may have come in contact with the virus. Cheng developed bird flu symptoms of fever, cough and pneumonia on May 9 and was hospitalized on May 14, Xinhua reported. Tests confirmed he was infected with bird flu virus strain H5N1. Chinese health officials were highly concerned by Cheng's case and ordered the army to monitor all who have come in contact with him, Xinhua said. No one else has shown any symptoms, the news agency said. China has reported 25 human cases of bird flu since 2003 and 15 of those people have died, Xinhua said.
