Gunshots were also heard following the explosion at the Civil Hospital. Two police officers and a local television cameraman were among the dead.
There are unconfirmed reports the blast was the result of a suicide attack.
Police say they suspect sectarian violence between the majority Sunni and minority Shia communities.
In February, suspected Sunni militants carried out a double bomb attack on Shia pilgrims in the city of Karachi. The militants hit a bus carrying the pilgrims and then targeted a hospital treating the victims of the first attack, killing 33 people and injuring dozens more.
Insurgency
The cameraman was at the hospital covering the aftermath of a fatal shooting of a Shia businessman. The room was full of the man's friends and family when the bomb was detonated, said police officials quoted by the Associated Press news agency.
Pakistan's President, Asif Ali Zardari, has condemned the incident and expressed his condolences to the families of the victims, according to the Associated Press of Pakistan.
Mr Zardari said the government was determined to defeat terrorism and such gruesome acts could not deter the resolve of the nation, the agency reported.
Quetta is the capital of Balochistan - Pakistan's poorest and most neglected province. There have been several insurgencies by Baloch nationalists over six decades that have been brutally crushed by the military.
Whereas previously Baloch nationalists demanded greater autonomy within the federation of Pakistan, today many Baloch are demanding a separate country for themselves.
Quetta is also believed to be a major base for the Afghan Taliban.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/8624338.stm
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