Key Points

In Week 16 (April 18–24, 2022), emergency department visits and hospitalizations following such visits declined among children (-15%, or 15,482 fewer visits, and -12%, or 1,072 fewer hospitalizations). Among adults, visits remained stable, while a slight decrease in hospitalizations was observed (-7%, or 4,205 fewer hospitalizations).

After five consecutive weeks of increases and stabilization in Week 15, Week 16 saw a decrease in visits for suspected COVID-19 across all age groups (6,332 vs. 8,070 visits, or a 22% decrease compared to a 2% decrease in Week 15 and a 4% increase in Week 14). The share of activity is down slightly (1.9% vs. 2.3% in Week 15), and the proportion of hospitalizations remains stable (40% vs. 39% in Week 15). This decline is observed across all age groups, with a 29% decrease (i.e., 322 fewer visits) among children and a 20% decrease (i.e., 1,416 fewer visits) among adults. COVID-19 remains the third most common condition in emergency departments among those aged 75 and older, and the seventh most common among children under 2. At the regional level, emergency department visits for suspected COVID-19 are declining in most regions, stable in Corsica and French Guiana, and increasing in Guadeloupe and Réunion (+21% and +16%, or +9 and +23 visits). Since monitoring began on February 24, 2020, 780,076 emergency department visits for suspected COVID-19 have been recorded.

Most other indicators are declining, though some remain at high levels for the season, particularly respiratory conditions (influenza/flu-like illness, ENT conditions, and bronchitis), gastroenteritis, and, among children, vomiting, isolated fever, and asthma. However, there was an increase in visits for conjunctivitis among 2- to 14-year-olds (+8%, or 29 more visits) and adults (+9%, or 56 more visits), and for urinary tract infections among 15- to 74-year-olds (+7%, or 216 more visits).