Key Points

In Week 34 (August 21–27, 2023), emergency department visits and hospitalizations following visits remained stable across all age groups.

Visits for suspected COVID-19 continued to rise, though at a slower rate than in Week 33 across all age groups, with 2,696 visits in Week 34 vs. 2,196 in Week 33, representing a 23% increase (+44% in Week 33) and across all age groups: - Under 2 years old: 417 visits in Week 34, a 34% increase (+56% in Week 33), - 2–14 years: 101 visits in Week 34, an 80% increase (+143% in Week 33), - 15–74 years: 1,375 visits in Week 34, a 17% increase (+57% in Week 33), - 75 years and older: 803 visits in S34, an increase of 23% (17% in S33).

These visits accounted for 8% of total emergency department activity (7% in S33), and the proportion of hospitalizations following a visit remained stable at 32% (30% in S33).

At the regional level, visits stabilized in Centre-Val de Loire and Nouvelle-Aquitaine and declined in Normandy (-12%). In other regions, increases ranged from +12% in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté to +100% in Corsica (very low numbers), with +30% in Île-de-France (+47% in S33), +45% in PACA (+59% in S33), and +20% in Occitanie (+38% in S33).

Other indicators showed little fluctuation. Across all age groups, there was an increase in visits for heatstroke (+99% across all ages, or +194 visits), with a rise in the proportion of hospitalizations following visits among those aged 75 and older (47% in S34 vs. 19% in S33), as well as visits for dehydration (+63% across all ages, or +265 visits). Among children, there was also an increase in visits for gastroenteritis (+18%, or +441 visits), vomiting (+10%, or 108 visits), and ENT conditions (+16% among 2- to 14-year-olds, or 509 visits), and among adults aged 15 to 74, visits for renal colic (+11%, or 205 visits).