The heir to South Korean business giant Samsung on Tuesday publicly bowed his head in apology for one of its flagship hospitals becoming an epicentre of the MERS virus, as health officials reported three new cases.

Samsung Medical Centre in Seoul has accounted for about half of all 175 confirmed cases of MERS in South Korea, the largest outbreak of the disease outside Saudi Arabia.

Squatting in super-tight "skinny" jeans may pose a health risk, Australian doctors warned Tuesday, reporting the case of a woman who temporarily lost feeling in her legs from an hours-long squeeze.

The 35-year-old collapsed and had to be hospitalised the day after helping a relative move home, spending hours on her haunches to unpack cupboards.

The death toll from India's latest incident of mass alcohol poisoning following the consumption of toxic homemade liquor rose to 90 on Saturday, Mumbai police said.

Dhananjay Kulkarni, deputy police commissioner in the western Indian city, said it was possible that the number of dead from drinking the illicit moonshine could reach three figures.

South Korea on Saturday said that there had been no new cases of MERS reported for the first time in 16 days, raising hopes the country is winning the battle to contain the deadly virus.

The number of fatalities also remained unchanged at 24, while confirmed cases were stable at 166 over the past 24 hours, the health ministry said.

Thai authorities Friday said two relatives of an Omani man found to have MERS were being tested for the deadly virus in the kingdom.

Thailand, a booming medical tourism hub popular with Middle Eastern patients, Thursday confirmed the Omani, 75, had MERS, days after he arrived at a Bangkok hospital for treatment for a heart condition.

Thirty-three people have died in Mumbai and nine are fighting for their lives after drinking toxic home-made liquor, police said Friday, in the latest incident of alcohol poisoning in India.

Dhananjay Kulkarni, Mumbai police deputy commissioner, said the victims had started to fall ill on Wednesday morning after consuming the illicit moonshine.

South Korea said Friday that the MERS outbreak that has killed 24 people appears to have begun subsiding, as it reported one new case -- the lowest rate of new infections in two weeks.

This brought to 166 the total number of confirmed cases of the disease in the country since the first was confirmed on May 20, the health ministry said.

South African police have rescued 11 teenage boys from forced circumcision, officials said Thursday, after parents reported that the youngsters had been taken away for the traditional but often dangerous ritual.

African teenagers from some ethnic groups often spend time in secluded bush or mountain regions as part of their initiation to manhood, which includes circumcision and lessons in courage and discipline.

The Philippines is testing an app that will speed up delivery of health services to hundreds of remote island communities, the science department said Thursday.

Using the app, designed for tablets using Google's Android operating system, the health officer of a remote town can upload medical records and clinical information on a patient, which can then be viewed anywhere by doctors and nurses.

An Australian woman who was tattooed after giving birth has been banned from breastfeeding by a judge who ruled it exposed the baby to an unacceptable risk of harm.

The woman, 20, who was not identified, has lodged an appeal which is due to be heard by the Family Court in Sydney on Friday.