Italy announces new Sars virus patient

Italy Friday said a person was infected with new Sars virus but played down risks of disease spread. The infectious diseases department at the health institute said a 45-year-old foreigner living in the central Toscana province was infected with new Sars virus, the health ministry said in a statement. It noted that the patient, whose name was not disclosed, had recently travelled to Jordan. The foreigner spent 40 days in Jordan, where one of his sons was apparently infected by an unknown type of influenza. The patient, who was put in isolated room, suffer from fever, cough and breathing problems, said the ministry, but described his condition as "good." The ministry assured citizens that the new Sars virus was not contagious but with "direct and long contact."