It was approximately 3:30 p.m. when the supply ran out.

"The sad part about that is, we probably will not get anymore," said Jackson County Health Department administrator John Thur.

The last syringe of flu vaccine was administered Wednesday at the Jackson County Health Department, from the 125 additional doses they received the day before.

"Pharmaceutical companies in the U.S. normally produce about 80 million doses nationwide," Thur said. "Never has this country utilized more than 75 million doses."

The local health department received its normal 23,000 doses for adults it has ordered for the past several years, despite first being told only 50 percent then 70 percent of the vaccine would be delivered.

In addition, vaccine for children or VFC was ordered and received in its entirety. The last shipment, which was 200 doses, was received Tuesday. The shipments, which are divided based on population by the Oklahoma State Department of Health, were divvied up between Beckham, Harmon and Jackson Counties.

Thur said for the last several days, they have given the flu shot to approximately 50 people a day.

The Centers for Disease Control estimates 10 to 20 percent of U.S. residents catch the flu annually, and an average of 114,000 are hospitalized for flu-related complications. The number of deaths from flu complications in America totals 36,000 annually, including as many as 440 in Oklahoma.

In a release from the Oklahoma State department of Health, Commissioner Dr. Mike Crutcher said the department began efforts to purchase additional vaccine before Thanksgiving, which resulted in an additional 19,000 doses for local county health departments.

Crutcher said there has been no evidence the disease had peaked. February is normally the peak month, however this year the flu season arrived earlier with cases reported in October.

The state of Oklahoma has had at least six people die this year due to influenza. One victim was 14-months old, two were ages 13 and 28 and three were elderly. Oklahoma was also added to a list of states that have been determined to have widespread flu activity.

There are three types of influenza viruses: A, B and C. Types A and B cause epidemics of disease every year, and type C causes a mild respiratory illness that is not thought to cause epidemics, and therefore a flu shot does protect against type C. Type A, which is divided into two subtypes based on protein, is also found in animals. Type B is circulated among humans and strains of it are in the influenza vaccine.

Flu symptoms may include fever, headache, tiredness, dry cough, sore throat, nasal congestion, and body aches.

The CDC states that adults may be contagious from one day before symptoms develop to seven days after being sick, and children can be contagious longer than seven days.

Although a flu shot is the most widely recommended form of prevention and provides one year of immunity, some people do hold reservations about the vaccine.

"Flu shots do not cause the flu," Thur said. "They're what's called a killed virus, so it doesn't cause the flu. It's a very safe vaccine. We've been using a killed virus for years."

In an article from NBC News, it was reported that 66 percent of Americans last year age 65 and older received flu shots. Thirty-four percent of people age 50 to 64 got them, with only 16.3 percent of those age 18 to 49 getting innoculated.

The report also noted that flu shots were given to 34 percent of health-care workers.

Having been available since 1945, the flu shot does remain intimidating to people who are afraid of needles. For them, an alternative called FluMist is available and is administered as a nasal spray. The inhalant however does contain a live virus, and is recommended for healthy people ages 5 to 49.

Health departments recommend vaccination for persons 50 years of age or older, women who will be in the second trimester of pregnancy during flu season, persons 6 months and older with chronic, long-term health conditions, those in need of regular medical care or those on long-term aspirin therapy and health care workers.

The virus is contagious and spreads when it is sent through the air as a person coughs, sneezes or even talks.

In addition to being vaccinated, state health departments also recommend washing hands frequently with warm, soapy water and a disposable towel or alcohol-based hand cleaner, avoid touching the eyes, nose and mouth, rest and eat properly, clean surfaces, such as doorknobs/handles, water faucets, and telephones frequently, and avoid taking babies/children near people with flu-like illnesses.

Recommendations for people with the flu are to stay home so as to not infect others, cover nose and mouth when sneezing or coughing, wash hands frequently, and do not share personal items such as utensils, drinking glasses and towels.

There are also prescription antiviral drugs such as amantadine, rimantadine, zanamivir and oseltamivir that are used to prevent and treat influenza. Antibiotics, however, should not be used to treat the flu since they are designed to treat bacterial illnesses and are ineffective against viruses.

The Oklahoma State Department of Health recently requested a supplemental legislative appropriation in the amount of $600,000 to purchase an estimated 80,000 additional doses of the flu vaccine for the next flu season of 2004-2005. If the legislation is approved the funds will be applied to the state's March 2004 flu vaccine order.

The request was made prior to the current flu epidemic.

"There's not anything we can do about supply now," Thur said, "but I would encourage people to get flu shots early next year."