The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned tourists to stay away from live poultry while travelling to countries where A/H7N9 avian flu is raging.

The organiation issued the warning with the disease moving unpredictably across China. A total of 338 A/H7N9 cases have been reported so far in 14 cities and provinces in China, resulting in 66 deaths.

To avoid the disease, WHO experts are advising people to wash their hands with soap while abiding by food safety and hygiene rules.

Any person with symptoms such as severe respiratory problems, particularly during or after travelling, should undergo a health check-up, they said.

Earlier, the first imported Influenza A/H7N9 case was detected in Malaysia and the victim was a female tourist from China, the Malaysian Health Ministry reported on February 12.

China’s Xinhua news agency on February 13 also reported another human case of H10N8, a new strain of bird flu, raising the total cases to three, including two deaths.-VNA