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OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma health officials said Thursday the state is poised to set a record for the number of influenza-related deaths in a single flu season — just one year after the current record was set.
The Department of Health reported that 68 people have died from the flu since the season began on Sept. 28, including 10 deaths recorded within the past week. The total is just four deaths shy of the record 72 flu-related deaths recorded during the 2013-2014 flu season, officials said.
"We expect we will have a couple of more months of influenza activity," said Laurence Burnsed, an epidemiologist with the state Health Department. Oklahoma's flu season extends through April.
"Not just in Oklahoma but nationwide, this has been a pretty intense season," Burnsed said.
The state has already set a record for the number of flu-related hospitalizations during a single season with about 1,600, far exceeding the previous record of about 1,300 set last year, according to figures provided by state health officials.
Burnsed said several factors are contributing to Oklahoma's deadly flu season.
First, this year's flu vaccine is only about 23 percent effective in preventing the flu, far less than the usual 50 percent to 60 percent. Burnsed said the vaccine is not a good match for the most common flu strain in Oklahoma and the U.S. this year.
Second, this season's prominent flu strain is the aggressive H3N2 virus, which has been attributed in the past to more intense seasons, Burnsed said. Experts said the strain is associated with more serious illness in children and older adults and has mutated, further eroding the effectiveness of the flu vaccine.
Still, Burnsed said Oklahomans who have not received a flu shot should get one.
"It still does provide some level of protection," he said. It can also reduce the severity of illness among those who are sickened by the virus.
During the current flu season, Tulsa County has reported the most deaths with 15, followed by Oklahoma County with six and Garfield County with five.
Fifty-one of the victims were 65 years old or older and nine were between 50 and 64. Two were 4 or younger, two were between 18 and 49 and the remaining 4 victims were between 5 and 17.
Figures provided by the Health Department indicate that 42 flu deaths were recorded in the 2012-2013 season, 10 in the 2011-2012 season, 29 in the 2010-2011 season and 46 in the 2009-2010 season, the first year the agency kept track of the statistic.
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