Over the past week in the region:

A sharp decrease in emergency room visits by older adults, falling back below the alert threshold, though the number of deaths among the very elderly remains high (+36% compared to the expected number). There has also been a sharp decline in the flu epidemic despite an increase in the circulation of the influenza B virus over the past three weeks. All activity indicators (Sentinelles network, SOS Médecins, emergency room visits) have decreased by more than 60%. Since Christmas, more than 200,000 people have consulted a general practitioner for clinical influenza (with a fever >39°C) in the region. Since the start of the season, 67 cases of severe influenza (including 10 deaths) have been hospitalized in intensive care units in the region. This number of cases, which has been rising for the past two weeks, is close to that observed during the pandemic period (73 cases in 2011–12). The recent increase mainly involves people over 60 years of age with type B virus infections. Outbreaks of acute respiratory infections in nursing homes remain active (139 outbreaks since September). The average hospitalization rate during these outbreaks is 7%, and the case fatality rate is 3%. Cases of gastroenteritis among children under 5 years of age, likely linked to the circulation of rotavirus, have remained at a high level for the past three weeks (SOS Médecins and the pediatric emergency department at Nantes University Hospital).