A British tourist has become the first confirmed case of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in Australia.
But health authorities said the man, who was not identified, had recovered and returned home without spreading the virus to anyone else.
He had been in Singapore and was treated at a Sydney hospital in late February, said Australia's chief medical officer Dr Richard Smallwood.
Dr Smallwood said it was only a matter of time before a case of SARS - which has killed more than 60 people worldwide - arrived in Australia. Two people in New South Wales state and one person in Australia's capital Canberra are still under investigation for the illness, he said.
Australian health authorities have investigated more than 30 suspected cases of SARS in the past three weeks.
None were found to fit the World Health Organisation criteria for SARS, except for the British tourist, Dr Smallwood said.
SARS has now infected more than 1,600 people in 15 countries.
Dr Smallwood also announced measures in Australia to help prevent travellers from spreading the disease. The new directives would include airline pilots having to declare - before landing - if they had any sick people on board who would need attention at the airport.
Anyone suspected of having the illness would be treated immediately at the airport, he said.
AP