A state health official says she expects Oklahoma to be one of the first states to get the brunt of the swine flu this year.
State epidemiologist Dr. Kristy Bradley says the number of people with flu-like illnesses increased at least 25 percent in five of the state's eight regions in the week ending Aug. 29.
She says the number of cases will likely peak before vaccines are available in mid-October.
Bradley says officials are surveying several physician practices and labs statewide to try to estimate the spread of the flu that's also called H1N1. The state is also requiring physicians to report all hospitalizations and deaths of patients with flu-like illnesses.
One Oklahoman has died of the swine flu.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
