Back to School: Asthma Returns in ChildrenAsthma is an inflammatory condition of the airways. It most often manifests as recurring episodes of breathing difficulties accompanied by wheezing, which can be triggered by various factors: allergens (dust mites, mold, animal dander, pollen, etc.), respiratory infections, and respiratory irritants (air pollution, tobacco smoke). Between these episodes, breathing is generally normal. Epidemiological surveillance of asthma conducted by the French Institute for Public Health Surveillance shows that in France, more than one in 10 children is affected by this disease. Each year, asthma accounts for more than 35,000 hospitalizations of children. The surveillance system also includes monitoring of emergency care visits for asthma, based on the activities of emergency facilities in the OSCOUR® network and SOS Médecins associations. Each year, starting in early September, data from these networks show a rapid increase in emergency care visits for asthma among children.In Midi-Pyrénées, according to facilities participating in the OSCOUR® network, the number of emergency room visits for asthma over the past two weeks showed a marked increase among children aged 2–14 (24 visits in week 36, 78 visits in week 37, 76 visits in week 38). Visits for ENT infections had been increasing for two weeks among 2- to 14-year-olds: 83 visits in week 36, 140 visits in week 37, and 187 visits in week 38.For SOS Médecins, calls involving a diagnosis of asthma or nasopharyngitis in Midi-Pyrénées increased in week 37 (7 and 17 consultations, respectively) and then decreased in week 38 (4 and 8 consultations, respectively), returning to levels nearly identical to those in week 36.

Surveillance of infections linked to the novel coronavirus (MERS-CoV): possible resurgence of suspected cases following the return from the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca. The WHO report on the international situation as of September 23, 2015, notes 1,565 cases (including 554 deaths) since April 2012.The annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca takes place from September 22 to 29, 2015, and an increase in suspected cases could be observed in France following the return of pilgrims from Saudi Arabia. Any suspected case must be reported by the clinician to the Midi-Pyrénées Regional Health Agency (ARS) by phone at 0820 22 61 01.List of countries considered at risk: includes countries that have reported cases and where the circulation of the virus has been documented, as well as neighboring countries and Middle Eastern countries that have recently reported indigenous cases: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Yemen.