Key Points

In Week 01 (December 29, 2025, to January 4, 2026), the second week of the end-of-year school break, the number of emergency department visits increased among adults (+6%, or +18,488 visits) and decreased among children (-16%, or -14,842 visits). Hospitalizations following emergency room visits increased only among those aged 75 and older (+8%, or +2,558).
Respiratory indicators continued to rise among adults, particularly among those aged 75 and older. They were stable or declining among children. The observed levels were comparable to previous years.

There was thus an increase in emergency department visits among adults for pneumonia (+26%, or +1,837 visits), acute bronchitis (+20%, or +465 visits), cough (+9%, or +165 visits), and among those aged 75 and older for influenza/flu-like illness (+40%, or +1,135 visits).

Among the latter group, there was also an increase in visits for dyspnea/respiratory failure (+21%, or +532 visits), cardiac decompensation (+18%, or +303 visits), and asthma attacks (+29%, or +53 visits).

Among other indicators showing an increase this week, we also note a rise in visits for:

• Trauma in children (+12%, or +1,427 visits) and in those aged 15–74 (+11%, or +4,741 visits);

• Abdominal pain in children (+6%, or +140 visits), vomiting in children (+6%, or +95 visits) and those aged 75 and older (+18%, or +75 visits), gastroenteritis in those aged 75 and older (+11%, or +40 visits), and dehydration in adults (+28%, or +68 visits).

There was also an increase in visits due to suicide attempts among those under 15 years of age (+31%, or +27 visits) and among those aged 15–45 (+16%, or +118 visits). These increases followed the trends of previous years, and the levels observed were comparable.