H7N9 patient leaves hospital in Southwest China

CHENGDU -- A 58-year-old male patient who had tested positive for the H7N9 avian flu virus in Southwest China's Sichuan province has been cured and left the hospital on Tuesday, provincial health authorities said.

The man was treated in a hospital in Suining city of Sichuan. He was the first H7N9 patient in Sichuan, the provincial health and family planning commission said.

"His temperature is normal and he shows no symptoms of infection," said He Zhengguang, head of the Suining city H7N9 prevention experts' team.

As of the end of last week, at least 270 H7N9 human infections had been reported in China, with 87 fatalities. Most cases were around the Yangtze and Pearl river deltas.

China's State Council called for continued efforts in prevention and control of the H7N9 bird flu outbreak.

The government ordered better management of live poultry markets, including closure, sanitation and quarantine.

H7N9 was first reported in humans in China in March 2013 and is most likely to strike in winter and spring.