Key Points

In Week 48 (November 29–December 5, 2021), emergency department visits and subsequent hospitalizations remained stable across all age groups. The number of visits and hospitalizations among children under 2 years of age is higher than in previous years.

Visits for suspected COVID-19 across all age groups continued to rise for the 7th consecutive week (6,345 vs. 4,682 visits in Week 47, +36%). This increase was observed across all age groups. The share of activity continues to rise (2% vs. 1.5% in Week 47), while the proportion of hospitalizations following visits remains stable at 51%. Among adults, COVID-19 has become the 7th (ages 15–74) and 9th (ages 75 and older) most common condition in emergency departments. At the regional level, visits are on the rise in all regions except Corsica, Réunion, Pays de la Loire, French Guiana, and Mayotte. The sharpest increases are observed in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (+55%, or +285 visits), Île-de-France (+34%, or +291 visits), Normandy (+34%, or +44 visits), PACA (+34%, or +201 visits), and Hauts-de-France (+31%, or +102 visits). Since monitoring began on February 24, 2020, 588,200 emergency room visits for suspected COVID-19 have been recorded.

Most seasonal indicators are on the rise among children, though less markedly than in previous weeks but still at levels higher than in previous years for respiratory indicators (acute bronchitis (+11%), cough (+9%), bronchiolitis in children under 2 years of age (+7%)), gastrointestinal indicators (gastroenteritis (+10%) and vomiting (+9%)), as well as for conjunctivitis (+8%). Visits for fever alone are also up by +7%. Visits across all age groups for influenza/flu-like illness have increased by +47% (i.e., +300 visits).