Key Points

In Week 31 (July 31–August 6, 2023), emergency department visits and hospitalizations following such visits continued to decline among children (down 6%, or 4,147 visits, and down 7%, or 452 hospitalizations) and remained stable among adults.

Visits for suspected COVID-19 are on the rise among children under 2 and adults, though numbers remain moderate:

• 111 visits in Week 31 vs. 71 in Week 30 (+56%) among children under 2

• 485 visits in Week 31 vs. 389 in Week 30 (+25%) among those aged 15–74

• 324 visits in Week 31 vs. 242 in Week 30 (+34%) among those aged 75 and older

The regions most affected by this increase are Pays de la Loire (+210%, or +21 visits), Normandy (+71%, or +15 visits), Bourgogne-Franche-Comté (+67%, or +10 visits), Nouvelle-Aquitaine (+55%, or +62 visits), Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (+35%, or +18 visits), Brittany (+36%, or +14 visits), PACA (+33%, or +36 visits), and Occitanie (+31%, or +27 visits).

Most other seasonal and non-specific indicators are decreasing or stable across all age groups.

It is worth noting, however, that emergency room visits for viral meningitis are increasing among children, albeit from low baseline levels (+11%, or +4 visits), with rates remaining significantly higher than those of the past three years, as well as a slight increase in chickenpox among children under 2 years of age (+10%, or +13 visits) and those aged 15–74 (+42%, or +18 visits).

Regarding mental health, there was an increase in visits for suicidal behavior among children under 15 (+26%, or +22 visits).