In my book, I wrote about having been quarantined for one week in a quarantine facility in Shanghai because of the 2009 outbreak of the H1N1 bird flu.
There is another outbreak of the Bird Flu in China now. The virus has evolved to the H7N9 strain, which is said to be more easily transmittable from birds to humans than the H1N1 virus was.
Since the first part of March, 37 people have died and 132 others have been infected with the virus according to the CDC report of June 7, 2013. The bird markets in Shanghai and many other cities in China have been closed and thousands of ducks, chickens, pigeons and geese have been slaughtered.
As of April 25, 2013, the U.S. government’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not recommended against travel to China. It is advisable though to check CDC alerts before traveling. http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices/watch/avian-flu-h7n9-china.htm
Updated: June 17, 2013