Key Points

• The circulation of SARS-CoV-2 has been increasing since late October 2021 among the 0-17 age group as well as in the rest of the population.

• Children and adolescents aged 0–17, who account for 21.5% of the French population, represent between 3% and 5% of hospitalized COVID-19 patients, a proportion that has remained stable during the second half of 2021.

• As with adults, hospitalizations in general and critical care units have been rising among those aged 0–17 since early December 2021. This increase primarily affects infants under one year of age.

• Relative to symptomatic pediatric cases, the proportion of cases hospitalized in pediatric wards was 1.4% during the last wave when the Delta variant was circulating exclusively (2021-S22 to S40), compared to 0.7% starting in week 2021-S41.

• 71% of PIMS cases (pediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome secondary to COVID-19), primarily affecting children aged 3 to 11, are hospitalized in intensive care or continuous care units.

• The data do not currently suggest increased severity of COVID-19 in children. However, it is too early to accurately characterize pediatric cases requiring hospitalization due to the Omicron variant, which appears to be associated with less severe disease.