two early and already very virulent epidemics

It had been two winters since, due to Covid-19, the winter epidemics of bronchiolitis and influenza had been atypical and less intense than normal. At the start of winter 2022, on the other hand, the scenario is quite different: the indicators used by health authorities to monitor these two diseases have jumped, with precocity and virulence, adding to concerns about the ninth wave of the coronavirus pandemic. Covid-19.

Number of cases twice the average

In 2022, the bronchiolitis epidemic started early, with 2,886 diagnoses for 10,000 emergency room visits the week of November 21. On average, over the last ten years, the curve of cases of bronchiolitis reaches its peak between the end of December and the beginning of January. This year, the respiratory disease that affects children under 2 years old is already reaching higher levels than the episodes of the last eleven years. Because, in addition to being early, the epidemic is virulent: according to the latest data, the number of cases per 10,000 consultations is almost twice the average. In the epidemic monitoring bulletin of November 30, the Public Health France organization specifies that hospitalizations for bronchiolitis represent half of the hospitalizations of children under 2 years of age, which puts pressure on the pediatric services.

Two epidemic waves of influenza in 2022

During the winter of 2021-2022, the flu arrived late, reaching its epidemic peak only in March. But it came back at the end of the year several weeks ahead of the average for the past eleven years. As the influenza epidemic generates proportionally fewer visits to the emergency room than that of bronchiolitis, we use the data from SOS-Médecins to characterize the epidemic. Like March, the data for the week of November 21 show four consecutive weeks of increased consultations, with a rate four times higher than the average, and an epidemic that sets in early.