Key Points

COVID-19

• After 8 weeks of decline, Week 25 marks the start of a resurgence in viral circulation in Réunion. Indeed, all key indicators are on the rise:

  • the incidence rate is 217 cases per 100,000 inhabitants,

  • the positivity rate is 14%,

  • the effective R is now significantly above 1.

• At the same time, new hospitalizations remain stable. Admissions to intensive care and deaths continue to fluctuate at a low level.

• The Omicron variant still accounts for 100% of interpretable sequences, with the BA.2 sublineage dominant. The proportion of cases of the BA.4 and BA.5 sublineages of the Omicron variant continues to rise in Réunion.

Influenza

• Pre-epidemic phase.

• Over the past two weeks, there has been a continuous but moderate increase in emergency department visits for influenza-like illness. In Week 25, the increase was 54% (n=20) compared to the previous week. 45% of emergency department visits (n=9) involved children under 15 years of age. For Week 25, the epidemic threshold has been exceeded. Virological surveillance in community practice, via the network of sentinel physicians, shows stable circulation of positive influenza A(H3N2) samples, with an average of 4 positive influenza cases per week since early June. Given the epidemiological context, Réunion is in the pre-epidemic phase.