Over the past week in the region:

After 10 weeks of the flu epidemic, the number of flu-like illnesses (visits to SOS Médecins and emergency room visits) has decreased significantly but remains above the epidemic threshold. The number of flu virus isolates identified by university hospital virology laboratories remains high. Hospitalizations for severe influenza in intensive care have been very frequent since the start of the epidemic (150 cases, 61% of which were in people aged 65 and older) and have been declining for the past two weeks.

Among people aged 75 and older, a slower decline in acute lower respiratory infections is observed in emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and SOS Médecins consultations.

However, in nursing homes, the improvement is notable, with only one new ARI outbreak reported in the past week, bringing the total number of reported outbreaks among the region’s 583 nursing homes to 218 since early September. Excess mortality among the elderly, which peaked during the first week of 2017, is declining.

Among children, the number of emergency room visits by infants is high, exceeding the alert threshold. RSV circulation remains unusually active, with a moderate persistence of bronchiolitis cases seen in the pediatric emergency rooms of both university hospitals.

There is also an increase in emergency room visits and hospitalizations for gastroenteritis among young children, likely marking the start of rotavirus circulation, to be confirmed next week.