Key Points

In Week 34 (August 21–27, 2023), activity at SOS Médecins clinics remained stable among children and declined among adults (-17%, or 4,793 procedures).

The increase in medical procedures for suspected COVID-19 continued but was less pronounced than in Week 33: 2,853 procedures were recorded in Week 34 vs. 2,674 in Week 33, representing a 7% increase (+41% in Week 33), and primarily involved children under 2 years of age (+33%; 76 procedures in S34) and, to a lesser extent, those aged 2–14 and 15–74 (up 7% and 9%, respectively; 193 and 2,373 procedures in S34). After several weeks of increases, these procedures declined among those aged 75 and older (down 23%).

At the regional level, a stabilization was observed in Île-de-France, Hauts-de-France, and Normandy, and a decline in Nouvelle-Aquitaine (-20%). In other regions, increases ranged from +11% in Occitanie to +85% in Centre-Val de Loire (very low numbers), with PACA and Occitanie showing a significantly less pronounced increase in S34 (respectively +12% and +11% vs. +38% and +36% in S33).

Among other indicators (most of which were down), we note the continued rise in heatstroke cases among adults (+167%, or 125 cases) and among 2- to 14-year-olds (+54%, or 20 cases). To a lesser extent, there was also an increase among adults in cases of dehydration (+27%, or 32 cases) and isolated fever (+16%, or 59 cases). Among children, some slight increases were observed in the 2–14 age group: ENT conditions (+11%), gastroenteritis (+16%), and impetigo (+12%); and among children under 2 years of age, albeit in small numbers: diarrhea (+16%) and bronchitis (+19%).