Key Points

Mortality: Following the rise in mortality observed since week 52 of 2016, a decline began in week 05 of 2017. This decline continued into week 07 (currently being consolidated), with observed numbers for the first week not significantly higher than expected.

Emergency department visits by vulnerable populations: Emergency department activity among children under 1 year of age and adults aged 75 and older is on the rise, exceeding the alert threshold.

Virology: Among the 132 samples testing positive for respiratory viruses from the laboratories at the Bordeaux, Limoges, and Poitiers university hospitals, the majority tested positive for RSV (5 in Bordeaux, 6 in Limoges, and 27 in Poitiers). We also note the detection of 26 coronaviruses (8 in Bordeaux, 2 in Limoges, and 16 in Poitiers) and 22 influenza A viruses (8 in Bordeaux, 0 in Limoges, and 14 in Poitiers).

Gastroenteritis: activity is stable according to data from SOS Médecins and Oscour®, with values remaining close to the alert threshold for the latter data source.

Bronchiolitis: transition to the post-epidemic phase. Indicators for bronchiolitis in community practice and hospital settings continued to decline and fell below epidemic thresholds. Activity in the AquiRespi network also decreased, with 102 cases treated during the last on-call shift. The number of RSV cases detected by the virology laboratories at the Bordeaux, Limoges, and Poitiers university hospitals (5, 6, and 27, respectively) is down compared to the previous week; however, RSV continues to circulate. Nationally, the end of the epidemic has been declared in Corsica, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, and Pays-de-la-Loire; and like Nouvelle-Aquitaine, the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté regions have entered the post-epidemic phase.

Influenza and influenza-like illnesses: the epidemic has ended in the NA region, with a sharp decline in influenza activity in hospital emergency departments and at SOS Médecins, with values below the thresholds. The proportion of hospitalizations following emergency room visits for influenza is trending downward (22.6% in Week 07-2017 to 12.5% in Week 08; 57.1% among those aged 65 and older). The number of severe influenza cases continues to rise (82 cases since November 1, 2016, with 14 deaths). Two clusters of acute respiratory infections (ARI) have been reported in long-term care facilities since the start of week 08-2017 (compared to 3 clusters the previous week), bringing the total number of reported clusters to 209; the number of deaths reported following these clusters is 108. Nationally, the end of the epidemic has been confirmed in all regions except Hauts-de-France.

Notifiable Diseases (ND): Note that there have been 17 reports of hepatitis A since the beginning of 2017, including 11 in February 2017.