Poultry dealers in Rangoon

China has confirmed a new human case of bird flu, the first in seven weeks.

Government-run media reported today that a 44 year old woman from southeastern Fujian province contracted the H5N1 strain of the avian flu virus.

The latest case brings to 23 the number of people in China who have contracted the deadly strain since it emerged in Asia in 2003 and spread globally.

Meanwhile, the World Organization for Animal Health reported a new outbreak of the deadly H5N1 virus in Burma. The Paris-based group said the strain that can infect humans was detected at poultry farms in the western suburbs of Rangoon.

Elsewhere in Asia, Vietnamese authorities said they will lift a ban on hatching ducks and other waterfowl on Thursday, despite a new outbreak of bird flu in the country's north.

Vietnam announced a massive, new poultry vaccination campaign in the coming week. Earlier bird flu outbreaks there have been controlled through culling and vaccinations.

The World Health Organization has recorded more than 270 human cases of avian influenza worldwide, leading to 167 deaths.