A patient receives dialysis at a local hospital in Huoshan County of east China's Anhui Province, Dec. 8, 2009. Health authorities in Anhui Province confirmed Wednesday that 16 renal patients have been infected with hepatitis C after receiving dialysis at a local hospital. (Xinhua/Liu Junxi) Photo Gallery>>>

    HEFEI, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- Health authorities in east China's Anhui Province confirmed Wednesday that 16 renal patients have been infected with hepatitis C after receiving dialysis at a local hospital.

    Aided by experts sent by the Ministry of Health, health departments in Huoshan County have provided free health checks for58 dialysis patients in the county hospital.

Sun Zhilong, a patient infected with hepatitis C after receiving dialysis, shows his inspection sheet in Huoshan County of east China's Anhui Province, Dec. 9, 2009.  (Xinhua/Liu Junxi) Photo Gallery>>>

    Preliminary blood tests showed 25 of them infected with hepatitis C.

    Zhu Yunwu, deputy head of the hospital, said the hospital's records showed nine of the 25 infected had contracted hepatitis C before receiving dialysis.

    "Hepatitis C has a latent period from two weeks to half a year on its virus carriers. There were possibilities that the patients had been the disease carriers before taking dialysis in the hospital," Zhu said.

    He said the dialysis patients had serious kidney illnesses and were vulnerable to infectious diseases.

Xiao Qin, a patient infected with hepatitis C after receiving dialysis, weeps while holding her inspection sheet in Huoshan County of east China's Anhui Province, Dec. 9, 2009. (Xinhua/Liu Junxi) Photo Gallery>>>

    Chu Chenqiang, a patient who first reported his infection in the hospital to the media in November, said he feared his close family might have contracted the disease from him.

    Once the provincial medical diagnostic center confirmed that the patients were infected with Hepatitis C, they would receive free treatment at the county hospital. "Free medical examination would also be carried out for the patients' family members," said Lu Shitang, deputy director of county health department.

    Zhu Yunwu said the hospital had just expanded the dialysis room by 160 square meters and added four new dialysis machines in order to separate the patients and reduce the infection rate.

    "Systematic management and better surveillance can cut the infection rate, but it's difficult to guarantee a zero rate of infection in dialysis, when blood passes through the machine to remove toxic substances," he said.

    Provincial health authorities are still testing the blood and investigating the cause of the incident.