Key Points

• In Week 49 (December 4–10, 2023), emergency department visits and hospitalizations following emergency department visits remained stable across all age groups, with the exception of a slight increase in visits among those aged 75 and older (+5%, or +2,663 visits).

• Regarding seasonal respiratory indicators, the increase in visits continues across all age groups, more pronounced among adults as in Week 48, at levels comparable to previous years, primarily for:

  • influenza/flu-like illness across all age groups (+31% across all ages, or +442 visits)

  • suspected COVID-19 in adults and children under 2 years of age (up 25% and 20%, respectively, or 951 and 82 visits)

• At levels significantly higher than in previous years, visits for pneumonia continue to rise among adults (+7%, or +381 visits) but remain stable among children. Among children under 2 years of age, visits and hospitalizations for bronchiolitis are down (-9%) for the first week.

• Among other indicators, there was an increase in visits related to digestive disorders, primarily among children for gastroenteritis (+11%) and vomiting (+22%). Finally, there was an increase in visits for isolated fever among children and those aged 15–74 (up 8% and 19%, respectively), and for conjunctivitis among children only (up 13%).