Brazil reported 148 new confirmed cases of the A/H1N1 flu on Wednesday, bringing the total number of infected patients in the country to 1,175, the Health Ministry said.

The A/H1N1 flu has already killed four people in Brazil -- a 29-year-old man and a nine-year-old boy from Rio Grande do Sul state, and an 11-year-old girl and a 28-year-old man from Sao Paulo state.

Sao Paulo and Rio Grande do Sul have reported 512 and 135 A/H1N1 flu confirmed cases respectively. Rio de Janeiro state has reported 128 confirmed cases, and Minas Gerais state has 109.

Only one of Brazil's 27 federation units, Rondonia state in the country's northern region, has not registered any case so far.

According to the ministry, most of the people infected with the A/H1N1 flu in the country had shown only light symptoms, and they had either been discharged or were in recovery.

Of the 1,175 cases, 649 were infected during international trips, mostly to Argentina, the United States and Chile, and 334 cases were domestic transmissions, while the remaining cases were still under investigation, the ministry said.

Additionally, health authorities said there were 3,926 suspected cases of the A/H1N1 flu in Brazil, and the number of discarded cases reached 1,837.

So far, the novel virus has killed 591 people worldwide, and the number of infection cases has risen to 119,300.

(Xinhua News Agency July 16, 2009)