A health official denied the rumor that there was another suspected SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) case on Monday in Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province, calling such media reports "baseless".

"We do have a fever patient due to pneumonia, but this has no direct connection with any suspected SARS case," Wang Ming, deputy director of Guangzhou City diseases prevention and control center, told a press conference in Guangzhou on Monday morning.

Some overseas media reported recently that there was a second suspected SARS case in Guangzhou. "Such rumors were baseless," Wang said.

"We have taken necessary medical measures towards the patient with a fever," he said, "our diseases prevention and control centers are examining and closely monitoring the situation."

"The patient has been recovering and his body temperature had remained normal for days," Wang said, adding that people had close contact with the patient did not show symptoms of fever.

To date, the 32-year-old freelance TV station worker is still the only confirmed suspected SARS patient in the Chinese mainland since May 23 when the World Health Organization (WHO) lifted the SARS-related travel advisory against Guangdong Province.

(Xinhua News Agency January 5, 2004)