OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma was among 14 states without a confirmed swine flu case Monday, but health officials said it is likely the state will soon lose this distinction.
A total of 286 cases have been reported in 36 states, including nearby Texas, Kansas, New Mexico and Colorado, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The only confirmed U.S. death from the disease is a toddler from Mexico who died in Texas.
State Department of Health spokeswoman Leslea Bennett-Webb said maps of the disease outbreak make Arkansas and Oklahoma look like a virtual island without swine flu.
But she also said there is little doubt a case will be diagnosed here soon.
Oklahoma doctors are sending samples to state health officials from patients with flu-like symptoms, and the state has sent a handful of those samples with potential for being positive for swine flu to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for further testing.
Bennett-Webb said that over the weekend her department received testing kits for determining whether samples are positive for swine flu, but it will initially rely on the CDC for confirmation of any positive results.
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<img src=" http://www.joplinglobeonline.com/images/zope/updated.gif" border=0 > Swine flu skipping Oklahoma so far
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