Key Points

COVID-19

In Week 16 of 2022, a downward trend in SARS-CoV-2 circulation was observed in the Grand Est region:

• Decrease in incidence across all age groups, particularly among those under 20.

• Decrease in the rate of new hospitalizations, but a slight increase in critical care admissions.

• Decrease in the number of emergency room visits.

• Since Week 07, the data has only covered the SOS Médecins associations in Strasbourg and Troyes. For these two associations, a decrease in the number of consultations for COVID-19 has been observed.

• Departmental incidence rates: a decrease in incidence rates across all departments. The highest rate is observed in Bas-Rhin (833 cases per 100,000 inhabitants), and the lowest is observed in Meuse (608 cases per 100,000 inhabitants).

• Variants: The screening rate is 46%, and 97% of screened tests indicate a suspected Omicron variant (for tests where the mutation is sought and interpretable).

• Vaccination (COVID Vaccine data): As of April 25, 2022, full vaccination coverage for the region was 78.3%. 87.8% of those aged 65–74 and 79.5% of those aged 75 and older had received a booster dose.

Influenza and influenza-like illnesses

• SOS Médecins: Since Week 07, the data now only covers the SOS Médecins associations in Strasbourg and Troyes. For these two associations, the number of consultations for flu-like symptoms, across all ages, is down compared to the previous week (412 consultations in W16-2022 versus 594 in W15-2022), representing 10% of total activity.

• Oscour®: The number of emergency department visits for flu-like symptoms, across all ages, decreased in week S16-2022 compared to the previous week (301 versus 609 in S15-2022) and represents 1.2% of activity. Children under 15 account for half of the visits.

• Virology data: According to data from the virology laboratories at the Nancy and Strasbourg University Hospitals, influenza virus circulation continued to decline in week 16-2022 in the region.

• Intensive care units in the region: Since the start of surveillance (10/04/2021), three cases of severe influenza have been reported.

• Acute respiratory infections in long-term care facilities: Since the start of surveillance (October 4, 2021), 31 episodes of ARI (excluding COVID-19) have been reported.

Acute gastroenteritis

• SOS Médecins: Since week 07, the data now only covers the SOS Médecins associations in Strasbourg and Troyes. For these two associations, the number of consultations for acute gastroenteritis (AGI), all ages, was 351 in week 16, representing an 8.5% share of activity, a slight increase compared to last week (324 consultations in week 15 of 2022, representing a 7.6% share of activity).

• Oscour®: The number of emergency department visits for GEA, all ages (Figure 6), continued to decline in Week 16-2022 (426 visits compared to 508 in Week 15-2022), representing 1.7% of the department’s activity. Children under 5 years of age still account for the majority of this activity, with 221 visits for GEA (8.1% of activity for this age group). The proportion of hospitalizations for GEA among all hospitalizations following an emergency department visit in children under 5 years of age has risen slightly (15.7%).