One of Guangdong's first Sars patients has gone missing, and the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) in Heyuan where he lives has launched a search for him.
A Heyuan CDC official said Huang Xingchu, a chef, had been missing since March. 'We were asked to do a follow-up interview with him but we have not been able to reach him,' the official said.
Mr Huang, 36, was admitted to hospital in Heyuan on December 15 and sent to Guangzhou for treatment two days later. He infected several medical workers in Heyuan but did not infect any of his family members. Reports said Mr Huang had probably gone into hiding to avoid being shunned or harmed by people afraid of Sars.
A Foshan CDC official said the government had conducted a campaign to educate people on Sars to avoid a backlash against patients. The official denied there had been any trouble with Sars patients being abused. A World Health Organisation expert in Guangzhou for follow up visits with early patients, Meirion Evans, said there was no medical evidence to suggest that patients who had recovered from Sars remained contagious.
