BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese health authorities confirmed five cases of H1N1 swine flu infection last week, bringing the total confirmed infections on the mainland to 72, the official Xinhua news agency said on Sunday.
There have been no reports of deaths from H1N1 flu in China.
According to the World Health Organisation, the new influenza strain has been found in 64 countries, and remains most prevalent in North America. WHO labs have confirmed nearly 19,000 infections including 117 people who have died.
In Beijing, a 31-year-old woman surnamed Ma tested positive for the virus last Friday, two days after arriving aboard flight CA984 from the United States, Xinhua said. All 10 people who had close contact with her have been quarantined.
Another woman, surnamed Yang, 34, arrived in the Chinese capital from the United States last Tuesday aboard flight HU496 and tested positive for the virus three days later, the agency said. Five people have been quarantined.
In Hubei, a Chinese-American girl tested positive last Thursday, the third such case in the central province. She arrived in the provincial capital Wuhan on May 30 on a flight from the United States.
In Guangdong, a 19-year-old man tested positive last Friday -- the 23rd confirmed case in the southern province. He arrived from Canada with symptoms of cough, headache and sore throat, Xinhua said. Twenty-four people have been quarantined.
In Sichuan, a 40-year-old Chinese-American woman became the southwestern province's second victim. She flew to the provincial capital Chengdu last Tuesday for a sightseeing trip to Jiuzhaigou. She felt ill, returned to Chengdu and tested positive last Friday, and health authorities have tracked down about 110 people who had close contact with her.
(Reporting by Benjamin Kang Lim; Editing by Jerry Norton)
