Key Points

In Week 32 (August 7–13, 2023), activity at SOS Médecins clinics continued to decline among children and remained slightly higher among those aged 75 and older (+6.5%, or +438 visits).

The increase in medical procedures for suspected COVID-19 continues at a slower pace among those aged 15–74, who account for the majority of procedures, but is accelerating among those aged 2–14 and those aged 75 and older:

• 52 procedures in Q32 vs. 31 in Q31 (+68%) among those under 2 years old (vs. +158% in Q31)

• 126 procedures in S32 vs. 73 in S31 (+73%) among 2- to 14-year-olds (vs. +17% in S31)

• 1,515 procedures in S32 vs. 1,275 in S31 (+19%) among those aged 15–74 (vs. +98% in S31)

• 182 procedures in Q3 2022 vs. 132 in Q3 2021 (+38%) among those aged 75 and older (vs. +29% in Q3 2021)

Across all age groups, 1,882 procedures were recorded in Q3 2022 (vs. 1,515 in Q3 2021), representing a 24% increase (vs. 84% in Q3 2021). Regionally, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, which saw a decline in Q3 2022 (-26%), remains the most affected region (accounting for 31% of procedures). In other regions (except for Centre-Val de Loire, which saw a decline), numbers remain low, and increases range from +17% in Martinique to +147% in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. Outside of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, the majority (60%) of cases are concentrated in four regions: Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (113 cases in Q3 2022, +135% compared to Q3 2021), Île-de-France (241 in Q3 2022, +80%), PACA (278 in Q3 2022, +122%), and Occitanie (160 in Q3 2022, +51%).

Among other diagnoses, there was an increase in procedures for asthma attacks in adults and children under 2 years of age (respectively +15% and +45%, or +66 and +15 procedures) as well as for allergies, insect bites, and skin lesions in children (respectively +21%, or +94 cases, and +36%, or +101 cases), and a 30% increase in fungal infections among children under 2 years old, or +20 cases).

Among those aged 75 and older, as in S31, the main SOS Médecins diagnoses were on the rise. Of particular note is the increase in procedures for bronchitis (+36%), death (+24%), and, in smaller numbers, malaise (+86%).