The latest case, a 40-year-old male doctor, was reported in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong, where all of China's confirmed SARS cases were reported since late last year.

The patient, who is a director of a hospital in Guangzhou, fell ill on January 7 with high fever, sore throat and fatigue.

The man, surnamed Liu, checked himself into a hospital on January 13 but was diagnosed with pneumonia.

The patient was admitted to the Guangzhou Medical College's No 1 Hospital on January 16 after his temperature jumped to 39 Celsius.

Nine days later, experts from the Guangdong Provincial Centre for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that he had contracted SARS.

Guangdong reported the case to the Ministry of Health last Monday, and the national CDC and WHO began more tests.

The Ministry of Health revealed the new case on Friday after the WHO's test results were released.

This case demonstrates that there are some problems with communication from local authorities to the central government, Mao Qun'an, spokesman for the Ministry of Health, said.

Guangdong did not report the case as suspect until the patient was confirmed. The Ministry of Health can directly report a case as confirmed only after the final test result from WHO laboratory are known, Mao noted.

The doctor has denied having any contact with animals or SARS patients. Health officials have been monitoring 48 people who had contact with him, but none shows any symptoms, Mao said.

Early detection, swift isolation and prompt reporting of cases are vital in the control of any infectious disease, said experts with the WHO.

(China Daily February 2, 2004)