This year's flu season came rather late, starting in February and extending into March. It typically begins in December.

At the Grove City Medical Center, doctors have been seeing a slow, but steady, increase in the number of flu patients since February, said Jo Anne Clobus, the center's vice president of marketing and public relations.

That increase has been seen at the emergency room as well as an urgent care practice owned by some of the center's doctors, the Family Healthcare Partners Express Care.

The flu vaccine this winter was successful, Clobus said. The only patients who were admitted to the hospital were those who had compromised immune systems, suffered underlying health conditions or had not gotten the vaccine. Those who had the vaccine but caught the flu had minimized symptoms, Clobus said.

Brian Wolfson, medical director of MedExpress in the Butler office, said the flu season peaked at an unusual time.

“We normally see (the flu) peak between January and February,” Wolfson said. “It's decreasing now, but it appeared to peak in March.”

Wolfson said the MedExpress facilities recorded predominantly Type A influenza, which Clobus said was true at the Grove City Medical Center.

Type A is typically the most severe case, relative to Type B and C. Type A also is typically seen more frequently, regardless of the year.

“The timing, severity and length (of flu cases) vary every year,” Wolfson said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that the flu vaccine this year was about 60 percent effective, but the CDC is not sure why the flu season peaked irregularly.

Wolfson said there are a number of theories, but a popular one is that the warmer weather this past winter affected the virus.

Diane Mohney, registered nurse with Quick Care Pediatrics of Butler, said they have only seen sporadic cases with no specific increase in March.

Wolfson stressed that if the flu is treated in the first 48 hours, with drugs such as Tamiflu, the severity can be lessened and the length decreased.

“The best way is to just prevent it,” he said. “The best treatment is prevention.”