Key Points

• The national influenza epidemic threshold has now been exceeded for nine consecutive weeks. With the start of school holidays, the epidemic may begin to decline in the coming weeks.

• Data from the Unified Flu Network show a slight decrease in incidence in week 7 in the Lorraine region, but this trend is not observed in mainland France, where incidence continues to rise slightly.

• The number of visits for influenza and influenza-like illnesses at emergency care units in Lorraine has continued to rise over the past two weeks. Conversely, the number of diagnoses for these conditions is trending downward for the SOS Médecins Meurthe-et-Moselle association.

• In Lorraine, since the start of the flu epidemic, 14 severe cases of flu requiring intensive care have been reported to the CIRE.

• According to data from the hospital laboratory network (RENAL) and the Grog Network, the influenza viruses circulating this year are serotypes A(H1N1)pdm09, A(H3N2), and B.