Health authorities in central China's Henan Province on Friday confirmed the deaths of 14 people from encephalitis B in July.

Henan saw an encephalitis B outbreak peak in July, reporting 437 cases, including the 14 deaths, Zhou Yong, spokesman of the provincial health department told Xinhua, but he refused to elaborate.

Henan is the third province in China to report encephalitis B deaths in July. The northwestern province of Shaanxi reported seven deaths last week, while 19 people died in northern province of Shanxi.

In addition, 12 people in Henan were infected with encephalitis B in June, but no deaths were reported, said Zhou.

"Though we have received more cases of the disease in July than the same period last year, the public don't have to be panic as it is a normal situation," said Zhou.

The outbreak appeared to have passed its peak and the number of new encephalitis B cases in August was decreasing.

"There's little chance of a new outbreak," he said.

Encephalitis B causes inflammation of the brain and can be contracted by people of all ages. It is usually the result of a viral infection transmitted to humans by mosquitoes. The illness begins with flu-like symptoms and severe headaches.

The Ministry of Health has instructed health authorities nationwide to eradicate mosquitoes and raise public awareness after the outbreak in Shanxi.

China saw two big outbreaks of encephalitis B in the 1960s and 1970s, prompting a nationwide vaccination campaign.

However, over the last couple of years, encephalitis B has been resurgent, with China reporting between 5,000 and 10,000 cases a year. Some local areas have been ravaged by severe outbreaks.

Source: Xinhua