Over 400 students at a university in central China's Henan province were hospitalized with high fevers linked to an unknown flu virus, the press and a school official have said.

A Chinese policeman wears a suit to protect against contagious diseases. Over 400 students at a university in central China's Henan province were hospitalized with high fevers linked to an unknown flu virus. [AFP]

The outbreak began on March 26 when 22 students were hospitalized with high fevers, Xinhua news agency said.

The next day the number of sick students at the Henan University of Science and Technology in Luoyang city rose to 88, and on March 28 there were 208 sick students in the university's infirmary, it said.

"There were over 400 students that became feverish with the flu," a university official who declined to be named said when contacted by phone.

He refused to detail what type of flu it was or how the outbreak had succeeded in infecting so many students. Local reports said medical experts have ruled out two types of flu.

Local health officials were currently trying to identify the flu strain, Xinhua said.

The temperatures of some of the students reached 39.6 degrees celsius (103.3 degrees Fahrenheit), it said.

The sick students were quarantined while school officials, under directions from provincial health authorities, cancelled classes and began disinfecting the university's 2,000 dormitory rooms, dining halls and classrooms, it said.

Most students were only hospitalized for about three days and released, the report said, adding that only several dozen students remained hospitalized as of Sunday.