A total of 76 people, mostly children at or under the age of 10, have been found infected with the Hepatitis C virus in a preliminary screening in eastern Anhui province, local authorities said Wednesday.

Of the total, eight are receiving medical treatment at the county people's hospital in Guoyang, the provincial health bureau said in a statement.

The hospital has screened more than 1,000 local residents since Nov. 17, said Niu Chuanxi, head of the hospital's examination department.

A team of experts sent by the Ministry of Health are currently investigating the outbreak.

Earlier 56 people in Guoyang were reported to have tested positive for the Hepatitis C virus in a preliminary screening and further nucleic acid tests on 16 confirmed 13 were infected.

An initial investigation by local health authorities showed all 56 once received intravenous injections at a clinic in the nearby Maqiao township of Yongcheng city in the neighboring Henan province, and the reuse of needles at a village clinic might have caused the outbreak.

Wu Wenyi, a man in his 60s who runs the village clinic in Maqiao, is not a licensed doctor, the Yongcheng city health bureau said Tuesday.

A total of 104 people in Maqiao also have tested positive for Hepatitis C virus in a preliminary screening. Of all, six have been confirmed as Hepatitis C patients in further tests, the Yongcheng city health bureau said.

The bureau added it is continuing to investigate Wu's role in the outbreak.