Strasbourg - The European Court of Human Rights on Thursday rejected a suit brought against Germany by a woman suffering from the AIDS virus seeking compensation for alleged unfair treatment by her doctor.

The 41-year-old woman of Turkish ethnic origin, a resident of the German city Wiesbaden, had become infected by her partner, who subsequently died of AIDS.

She initially sued her doctor for damages in 199 for not having informed her of her partner's AIDS infection.

But German courts rejected the suit, upholding the doctor's argument that he was bound by the principle of doctor-patient confidentiality. But the doctor did urge the woman to take protective measures against AIDS.

The woman then took her case to the European Court, which Thursday upheld the German court ruling, saying the facts of her case had been carefully examined in those legal proceedings. (dpa)