 The previous outbreak led to mass testing |
Fears of a renewed Sars outbreak in Hong Kong have been quelled by the results of tests on 18 people suspected of having the illness. The 18, all linked to the same mental institution, tested positive for influenza instead.
A spokesman for the Health Department of Hong Kong said: "It's confirmed that they have influenza A. It's definitely not Sars."
Hong Kong is still recovering from an outbreak that killed almost 300 people, and infected more than 1,750.
Two people are still in intensive care as a result of Sars. Tourism, and commerce in general was hard hit by fears over the virus, and there are concerns that a further rash of cases could do irreparable damage.
The 18 patients were all admitted to hospital in the past week.
Health officials visited the institution on Friday and carried out extensive testing.
Sars discrimination
In the wake of the outbreak, the Equal Opportunities Commission in Hong Kong reported on Monday that it had received hundreds of enquiries and complaints about discrimination associated with Sars.
They include the case of a Sars patient fired after contracting the illness.
Another complaint centred on the retraction of a job offer after it emerged that the future employee lived in an apartment building where there had been a rash of cases.
A spokesman for the commission conceded that job prospects for recovered patients were bleak.
"Employers may not want to employ anybody who has had Sars, given the choice."
So far, more than 800 people have died from Sars worldwide, and 8,000 confirmed cases have been recorded.
While the World Health Organisation has lifted travel warnings about the hardest-hit areas, some scientists say that the virus has almost certainly not been eradicated, and there are likely to be further outbreaks from time to time.
One-Minute World News 
News services
E-mail this to a friend 
Printable version 
It's definitely not Sars 
