The fraction of the sample that died was 44/123 = 0.36. The sample consisted of 123 people with documented bird flu. Visually we can represent this with the pie chart below. The decimal fraction 0.36 is equivalent to 36%. This decimal fraction can be computed manually, in a spreadsheet, on a simple hand-held calculator, or by using the calculator on a smart phone. In this case, it would be reasonable to round this off to 0.36.
This proportion represents a case-fatality rate, and, like all proportions, it can be reported in several ways: They reported that 44 of these individuals died as a result of their infection.
The British Medical Journal reported on 123 confirmed cases of H7N9 avian flu (bird flu) admitted to hospitals.
