Comment on West Nile virus activity remains low in Oklahoma

By Jaclyn Cosgrove, Staff WriterThis time two years ago, Oklahoma was in the middle of the worst year of West Nile virus the state had seen. A total of 55 cases of West Nile disease were confirmed in 14 counties, and one person had died. However, so far this year, Oklahoma has seen only one confirmed human case. State epidemiologist Kristy Bradley said this year’s West Nile season illustrates how cyclical the virus can be. “We have seen this in previous years that follow a more severe outbreak of West Nile virus where, in the year or two following, it’s deeply declined with very low incidence for a couple of years before it starts to rise again,” Bradley said. Oklahoma’s first case of West Nile was confirmed in early July in a Major County resident older than 50 who was hospitalized because of symptoms of the virus.Read more on NewsOK.com