Key Points

In Week 10 (March 6–12, 2023), the week the last school district returned to in-person learning, emergency department visits were slightly higher among 2- to 14-year-olds (+7%, or +4,339 visits) and remained stable across other age groups.

Hospitalizations following emergency room visits remained stable across all age groups. In line with the start of the school year, after 2 to 3 weeks of decline, a moderate increase in most indicators was observed among children aged 2–14, particularly:

• Seasonal respiratory conditions: ENT (+10%, or +492 visits), bronchitis (+28%, or +33 visits), pneumonia (+12%, or +27 visits), influenza/flu-like syndrome (+12%, or +120 visits), and asthma (+17%, or +159 visits—also seen in other age groups).

• Gastrointestinal conditions: gastroenteritis (+14%, or +449 visits among those under 15), vomiting and abdominal pain (up 12% and 13%, respectively, among 2- to 14-year-olds).

Regarding influenza, the increase observed among 2- to 14-year-olds was not seen in other age groups, which remained in decline or stabilized. Conversely, visits for suspected COVID-19 were sharply rising across all age groups except for children aged 2 to 14 (+41%, or +449 visits).

Finally, among other indicators, there was a notable increase in visits for suicidal behavior among those aged 45–64 (+18%), cardiac decompensation among those aged 75 and older (+10%), and chest pain among those aged 15 and older (+8%).