Key Points

COVID-19

• After the incidence rate fluctuated between 500 and 600 cases per 100,000 inhabitants since Week 29, viral circulation was on the rise in Week 33. In fact, the incidence rate adjusted for public holidays was 753 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, representing a 30% increase compared to the previous week. Concurrently, the testing rate was also rising, as was the positivity rate, which increased by 3 percentage points in Week 33.

• Regarding hospital indicators, new hospitalizations were on the rise but continued to fluctuate at an average level, around 110 new admissions per week. Admissions to critical care were decreasing, while deaths continued to fluctuate at a low level.

Influenza

• End of the epidemic.

• Virological surveillance of influenza in hospitals shows a very clear decrease in the circulation of influenza viruses, which were predominantly type A(H3N2). The positivity rate was 3% in Week 33, whereas it was 23% in Week 26; since then, it has been steadily declining. In S33, there were only 3 positive influenza samples out of 94 negative samples (Figure 6); of these 3 samples, 2 were type B and 1 was type A(H3N2).

Bronchiolitis

• Emergency department visits for bronchiolitis among children under 2 years of age decreased between S32 and S33, with 28 and 21 visits, respectively. Hospitalizations following an emergency department visit also decreased slightly, from 14 in S32 to 11 in S33.