Summary

• In week 24 of 2017 (June 12–18), emergency department visits for all causes were slightly higher among children (+4%) and stable among adults. They remain at a level slightly higher than in previous years. Hospitalizations rose slightly across all age groups (+10% among children and +4% among adults).

• Seasonal spring and summer conditions were mostly on the rise in week 24. There was an increase in visits for fever alone and general malaise, particularly among children (+16% and 28%, respectively) and people aged 75 and older (+26% and 57%, respectively). Visits for asthma and allergies are slightly up, respectively among children aged 2 to 14 (+15%) and adults (+6%). For all these diagnoses, the share of activity observed within all-cause activity is similar to previous years. Furthermore, amid a heat wave, particularly during the 24th week, there was a predictable rise in emergency room visits for heat-related illnesses (HRI). The largest increases were among children aged 2 to 14 (+98%) and adults aged 15 to 74 (+76%), for whom a diagnosis of heatstroke was the most common. Among people aged 75 and older (+28% in visits), diagnoses of dehydration and hyponatremia were the most frequent. Visits for insect bites and burns are also on the rise across all age groups except among those under 2 years old (+24% and +24%, respectively). For these last three types of visits, the observed activity rates are higher than in the previous two years.

• The most common conditions seen in the emergency department (excluding seasonal conditions) are mostly stable or declining across all age groups, with the exception of visits for abdominal pain (+7%), neurological disorders (+5%), and skin and subcutaneous infections (+7%) among children aged 2 to 14, as well as visits for renal colic among adults aged 15 to 74 (+5%).