Tulsa World: Six Oklahomans died from swine flu last week, health officials say

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Six Oklahomans died from swine flu last week, health officials say

Vials of H1N1 vaccine are pictured in a refrigerator at the Tulsa City-County Health Department earlier this month. SHERRY BROWN/Tulsa World

By KIM ARCHER and SHANNON MUCHMORE World Staff Writers
Published: 10/29/2009 11:17 AM
Last Modified: 10/29/2009 12:31 PM

Swine Flu: Get more information on swine flu, including prevention tips and frequently asked questions..

Six Oklahomans died from swine flu last week, bringing the official tally of reported deaths from the novel H1N1 virus to 17, health officials said.

The Oklahoma State Department of Health releases its weekly figures each Thursday.

An Oklahoma City girl who died Monday would not have been included in the state's official tally of 17, as well as a Kay County man who died earlier this year before a new reporting system went into place Sept. 1.

Of the latest deaths, four were in Oklahoma County, one was in Carter County and another was in Canadian County.

Four of those who died were adults and two were younger than 19, said state health department spokesman Larry Weatherford.

Four of the six who died had underlying medical conditions that put them at greater risk for complications or death from the novel H1N1 virus, he said.

The two who were younger than 19 did not, he said.

"I think it's really important not to create the impression that a preexisting condition is required for the H1N1 influenza to be dangerous," Weatherford said.

Oklahoma hospitalizations associated with the virus fell slightly, he said.

Another 175 people were hospitalized in Oklahoma last week due to complications

from the swine flu, bringing total hospitalizations in the state to 678 as of Sept. 1, the report said.

In total, six of the 19 who died were younger than 19, and two of the children had underlying medical conditions that may have increased their risk of illness, the report said.

One child was younger than 6 months of age.

Overall, at least 10 of those who died had documented underlying conditions such as asthma, diabetes, obesity or an immune-compromising condition.

Weatherford said as soon as H1N1 vaccine is received, "we get them out the door as soon as we can."

By KIM ARCHER and SHANNON MUCHMORE World Staff Writers

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Reader comments for this story have been moved to the most updated version of the story, now under the headline "Flu shots go quickly," which was published on 10/30/2009. So far, 61 comments have been made.