Key Points

COVID-19

• Viral circulation continues to show a very marked acceleration across the region.

• Hospital indicators are at very high levels, with a sharp increase in the number of new hospitalizations.

• In December and January, nearly 90% of patients in critical care units were unvaccinated or had an incomplete vaccination regimen.

• The Omicron variant is currently almost exclusively present in Réunion (95% in Q3 2022).

Bronchiolitis

The decline in emergency room visits and hospitalizations due to bronchiolitis among children under two years of age continues. This marks the second consecutive week below the epidemic threshold. Réunion has returned to baseline surveillance indicators, indicating a return to a normal health situation.

Influenza

In Réunion, the number of emergency department visits for influenza-like illness remained stable this week (8 visits). No hospitalizations or intensive care admissions were reported in Week 3 of 2022. Only one positive influenza sample was identified by hospital virological surveillance in week 02/22, compared to 4 in week 01/2022. All positive samples were of the influenza A-H3N2 type. Following the peak observed in week 51, influenza surveillance indicators have returned to baseline levels, confirming the end of the epidemic.