Key Points

COVID-19

• The decline in the incidence rate (IR) is almost exclusively linked to the decrease in the testing rate (TR) and the stabilization of the positivity rate (PR). The regional (unadjusted) IR fell from 1,496 per 100,000 inhabitants in Week 27 to 961.6 per 100,000 inhabitants in Week 28. IRs are declining in all four departments. Decrease in emergency room visits and calls to SOS Médecin, decrease in critical care admissions and new general hospitalizations—indications of improvement, tempered by a sharp rise in deaths. Estimated vaccination coverage by place of residence stands at 83.0% for one dose and 82.2% for a full course.

Extreme heat, heat wave

• In Brittany, the departments of Morbihan and Ille-et-Vilaine were placed under a yellow alert on July 10 and 11, respectively; they were joined by Finistère on July 15. From July 16, 2022, to July 18, 2022, Météo-France classified four departments as under orange alert on July 16, then under red alert on July 17 and 18, with a peak of extreme heat expected on July 18 along the country’s western coast.

• This heat wave led to an increase in visits to emergency rooms and calls to SOS Médecins for heat-related illnesses in Brittany.

Acute gastroenteritis

• Low activity

• Oscour®: A slight increase in emergency room activity across all age groups was observed in Week 28, with 134 visits (+5 visits, or +4% compared to Week 27). This increase primarily affected children under 5, who accounted for 44% of cases. Gastroenteritis accounts for 3.4% of visits among children under 5 (compared to less than 1% across all age groups).

• SOS Médecins: A slight increase in the number of SOS Médecins consultations for gastroenteritis, with 177 consultations for this diagnosis in Week 28 (+8 consultations, or +5% compared to Week 27). Across all age groups, gastroenteritis accounts for 4.2% of total SOS Médecins activity and 3.2% among children under 5.

• Sentinelles Network: low activity in week 28; the incidence rate of acute diarrhea cases seen in general practice consultations was estimated at 75 cases per 100,000 inhabitants (95% CI [17; 133]) (unconsolidated data).

• Virology data: According to data from the Virology Laboratory at Brest University Hospital, rotavirus was circulating (2/214, representing a positivity rate of 9.5%); no positive enteric samples for adenovirus or norovirus were detected. Data from the Virology Laboratory at Rennes University Hospital were not available for week 28.