A total of 1,363 people died of infectious diseases in the Chinese mainland in May, with AIDS being the top cause of death, said a statement of the national health authorities on Thursday.
AIDS resulted in 1,117 deaths last month, followed by tuberculosis which claimed 119 lives, according to the National Health and Family Planning Commission (NHFPC).
In total, 727,388 people tested positive for infectious diseases in May.
Last month also reported two cases of cholera, with none causing death. Plague and cholera are Class A infectious diseases in China, the most serious ones.
About 317,129 cases were identified as Class B infectious diseases, including hepatitis, tuberculosis, syphilis, diarrhea and scarlet fever, which accounted for 89 percent of the cases, the statement said.
The NHFPC also said Class C infectious diseases claimed 28 lives in May, with foot-and-mouth disease, infectious diarrhea and mumps spotted most frequently.
