China's latest bird flu patient in south China's Guangdong Province has been recovering well after 20days in hospital, local health authorities said Wednesday.

The man's respiratory functions had improved, and he was reading, writing and listening to music, said Zhou Boping, head of the Donghu Hospital in Shenzhen.

The Ministry of Health confirmed on June 15 that the 31-year-old surnamed Jiang had contracted the H5N1 strain of avian influenza, bringing China's total human infections to 19.

Jiang was critically ill when he arrived at the hospital, said Zhou.

His condition had improved to stable, but he still needed time to recover completely, said Zhou.

Doctors said that he should be able to breath without the use of a respirator in a week.

Bird flu has killed 12 Chinese people since last year. The disease has also infected 228 people and killed 130 worldwide, according to figures from the World Health Organization.

(Xinhua News Agency July 6, 2006)