Flu outbreak across the state

(WTNH) -- Flu season has arrived earlier than usual this winter and it's packing quite a punch.

18-month-old Ryan Lagaipa is not a happy camper.

"He had a hundred and three fever last night. The whole family has been having a chest cold but, he really wasn't feeling well," said Lisa Lagaipa of Seymour.

Doctor Harry Kipperman says his office has been slammed with patients with flu like symptoms. High fevers, coughs, muscle aches and pains and sore throats are hitting Connecticut hard.

"This year it's really rampant. We're seeing ten, fifteen kids a day with influenza," said Pediatrician Dr. Kipperman.

Dr. Kipperman said flu cases were unusually low the past two years. He says that might have given people a false sense of security, leading some to pass on their annual flu shot.

"The vast majority of our patients get the vaccine. But, the vast majority of the people that've come in have not had their flu shots. Despite our best efforts, it's surprising how many have not had their flu shots," said Dr. Kipperman.

Doctors say it's never too late to get your flu shot and if you suspect that you might have the flu, they say it's best to get to the doctor as soon as you can.

A simple swab of the nose and within ten minutes doctors can tell if you've got it.

"We do have a treatment for the flu, for some individuals, namely Tamiflu, which actually works best, better earlier that it's given. It should be given in the first couple of days of the illness," said Dr. Kipperman.

The flu generally lasts about a week. Dr. Kipperman says treating it early on can shorten the time you are sick and help reduce the symptoms.

If you have it, doctors say drink lots of fluids, get plenty of rest, take Tylenol or Motrin, and avoid exposing other people to the flu.

"We can treat it both with symptomatic care and for some individuals with Tamiflu but the best way to deal with the flu is not to get it in the first place and that's with a flu shot," said Dr. Kipperman.

As for little Ryan, his mom is learning that lesson the hard way. Ryan tested positive for the flu virus.

"I never got the flu shot when I was pregnant. I never got a flu shot, he never got the flu shot, and I guess we made the wrong decision," said Lagaipa.

"What are you thinking for next year," asked News 8's Jacquie Slater.

"Flu shots it is," said Lagaipa.