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It was not clear why so many hospitals were needed when official statistics show only 37 people have been affected by Sars, of whom four have died.
BEIJING, April 16 (Reuters) - Beijing could have up to 200 "probable" cases of the flu-like SARS virus, or about five times the 37 infections reported by the government, a World Health Organisation official said on Wednesday.
"I would guess the range would be between 100 and 200," WHO official Alan Schnur told reporters when asked to estimate the number of cases of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome in Beijing.
In WHO's medical lingo, "probable" is the equivalent of "confirmed", and differences in how China labelled cases accounted for some of the discrepancy between the WHO estimate and the official tally, Schnur said.
The Beijing government figures include four deaths.