H6N1 virus common in poultry: Taiwan official  

台湾出现H6N1流感病毒 江宜桦促加强疫病监测

(ECNS) — Jiang Yi-Huah, head of Taiwan's internal affairs, urged the island's agriculture and health departments to ramp up epidemic monitoring and control over animals and humans in a bid to prevent any potential spread of the H6N1 flu virus, the Taiwan-based Central News Agency reported on Thursday.

The virus widely exists in poultry, Jiang said.

A local hospital reported on May 20 that an unconfirmed type of flu virus was found in respiratory tract samples taken from a patient. The patient was later identified as a 20-year-old woman from central Taiwan, who was initially diagnosed with pneumonia, according to the island's disease control authority.

Further testing confirmed the virus to be H6N1, a low-pathogenic avian influenza virus that exists commonly in birds but has never been reported in humans.

According to Jiang, after the world's first human infection of H6N1 bird flu was reported on the island, local health and agriculture authorities launched a prompt and thorough investigation and reported the case to WHO.

Jiang also revealed that the patient has already recovered and no new cases of human infection of H6N1 have been reported.