The state has seen its first two small outbreaks of H1N1 influenza, both on school campuses. But as health officials had hoped, all of the recent cases of the new flu strain have been mild and uncomplicated.

At Colby-Sawyer College in New London, about 60 students and staff have come down with a flu-like illness. Though the state is not testing every flu case to see if it's the H1N1 strain, tests of a few cases suggest that the sick people on campus do have the new flu.

At St. Paul's School in Concord, about 20 students have shown symptoms of a flu-like illness. Tests confirm that at least some of them have come down with H1N1 flu.

At both schools, campus health officials are treating those students who need it, but most sick students are being asked to either return home or stay isolated in their dorm room until their fever subsides. Cases on both campuses are conforming to the pattern health officials expect: The students are getting sick with fever, cough and sore throats for a few days, and then improving without medical intervention.

"It's fair to say it's been pretty mild here," said Jana Brown, a spokeswoman for St. Paul's.

At Colby-Sawyer, many of the students and staff who reported illness early last week are already back in school, said spokeswoman Kimberly Swick Slover.

"There was an influx of people at the beginning of the week," Slover said. "And then by the end it started to taper off."

Other local campuses said they've seen a smattering of flu-like cases, but they've reported no clusters.

The state health department said the early cases are reassuring but said they will continue to track the illness and watch for more serious cases.

"It's been a mild-to-moderate illness, but if it starts to change, or if there's a certain population - an age group, perhaps - that is starting to get more severe illness, that's something we want to track," said Chris Adamski, the state's chief of disease control.

The state is not testing every flu-like illness, but it is taking certain measures to help watch the spread of H1N1. Some members of large outbreak groups will get tested. And some doctors will test all their patients with symptoms in order to give the state a snapshot of the illness's prevalence.

So far, most tested cases of flu have been H1N1, not seasonal flu.

Adamski urged everyone to use the common-sense preventive measures health officials have been repeating for months: wash your hands frequently, cover your coughs and sneezes and stay home from school or work if you're sick.

Because the illness is generally mild, health officials say you don't need to contact your doctor if you're usually healthy and you get the flu. Health officials recommend lots of fluids, over-the-counter medicines and rest.

But if you have health conditions that could put you at risk, or if your illness starts showing severe symptoms, especially difficulty breathing, you should seek medical help. High-risk groups include pregnant women and children with lung or immune disorders.

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