Key Points

Asthma at the Start of the School Year

Every year, during the two weeks following the start of the school year, there is a spike in emergency care visits for asthma among children under 15.

In mainland France, the school year began on Thursday, September 2, 2021; weekly health monitoring was conducted using data from the OSCOUR® and SOS Médecins networks.

Other Respiratory Infections

An epidemiological analysis was conducted regarding consultations at SOS Médecins for upper respiratory tract infections (URTI), nasopharyngitis, and tonsillitis in the context of the resumption of school, university, and professional activities and the easing of public health measures following the decline in Covid-19 epidemic activity in the region. The analyses presented focus primarily on individuals under 15 years of age and those aged 15–44, given that viral circulation is typically more active in these age groups. Following a suspected increase in respiratory infections in the city of Lille, a focus on the Lille metropolitan area was also conducted using data from the SOS Médecins associations in Lille, Roubaix, and Tourcoing.

Health Surveillance of Asthma

In the Hauts-de-France region, during the two weeks following the start of the school year, the number of emergency room visits for asthma among children under 15 rose sharply, reaching a peak of 4.2% in week S37-2021. The trends observed are comparable to those seen in previous years. Nearly 36% of visits were followed by hospitalization in week S36-2021 (compared to 28% the previous week).

A peak in the proportion of visits for asthma was observed in March 2020, coinciding with the onset of the COVID-19 epidemic in the region, which was characterized by a sharp decrease in emergency department visits for all causes (five times fewer visits among children under 15 than in previous years), while the number of visits for asthma remained stable.