COVID. The new epidemiological update from Public Health France of March 31, 2022 warns: admissions to critical care are up slightly. Update on the situation.
[Mis à jour le 1er avril 2022 à 17h46] The new epidemiological point of Public Health France is sounding the alarm, an increase in entries is observed in critical care services: “In week 12, the circulation of SARS-CoV-2 intensified on the territory, with a increase in new hospitalizations.” Additionally, the report states that the “incidence rate is up across all age groups for the third week in a row.” Indicators which confirm the messages transmitted by the Scientific Council in mid-March, in particular that of its press conference on March 15, the reminder of which that “the epidemic is not over” had marked the audience. However, the positive note is on the side of hospitalizations, since new hospital admissions remained stable, all services combined.
Thus, in a new “alert note” issued Friday, March 11 to the government, but transmitted to the press Tuesday, March 15, the Scientific Council had warned: “the epidemic is not over!” While an increase in the number of daily cases is currently observed, he evoked a multifactorial rebound. Several explanations were thus put forward – and are still relevant – such as the relaxation of the population vis-à-vis barrier gestures and hand washing, or even the start of the school year and the decline in the immunity provided by vaccines. .
During a press conference on March 15, Scientific Council had deplored that the Covid-19 epidemic had passed into the background since the invasion of Ukraine by Russia. He was also worried about a “trivialization of the epidemic in society”. Two statements that seem to confirm the updated figures. In addition, in mid-March, emphasizing the importance of “maintaining protective measures in the oldest, frail and immunocompromised”, the Scientific Council proposed extending the fourth dose to elderly people between 65 and 80 years old and calls for “accelerating the vaccination of children aged 5 to 11 with a medical risk factor” and boosting prescriptions for the antiviral Paxlovid, which limits the risk of severe form. For more information on the figures relating to the coronavirus epidemic in France, you can consult our dedicated article.
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According to last epidemiological point from Public Health France (SPF), published Thursday March 31, in week 12 – i.e. from March 21 to 27, 2022 -, “the incidence rate up in all age groups for the third consecutive week” and the ” positivity rate is very high and rising sharply.” Also, it’s important to note that “critical care admissions” are “up slightly.”
- In mainland France, the incidence rate corrected increases in all age groups, including the oldest, in week 12 (March 21-March 27, 2022), in comparison with week 11. It is 1,337, against 940 on March 20, which is equivalent to a 42% increase. Similarly, the positivity rate, 30.5% in S12 against 27.1% in S11, takes 3.4 points, thus continuing to rise in all age groups.
- In Overseas France, the results are mixed, since in Martinique, if the incidence rate is still high, (>1,000/100,000), it is down compared to previous weeks, while the high incidence rate in Reunion (>1,000) is slightly up.
- The effective reproduction rate of the virus, says R, increased in week 12, continuing the upward curve of the previous weeks. It is evaluated at 1.35 (against 1.29 in S11).
- The number of new hospitalizations of Covid-19 patients increases in H12. The indicators by date of admission showed 7,225 new hospitalizations of patients with Covid-19 in week 12, compared to 6,887 in week 11, therefore an increase of 5%. Unfortunately, new critical care admissions are to be deplored and their increase in S12. Thus, the balance sheet goes from 609 in S11 to 624 in S12, an increase of 2%. Last but not least, the number of deaths continues to decrease in S12: it goes from 688 in S11 to 622 in S12, i.e. a decrease of 10%.
- The Omicron variant of the coronavirus is still the majority in France in S11, suspected and confirmed in 99.9% of March 14 S11 Flash survey interpretable sequence screening tests (preliminary data). The BA.2 sub-lineage, sub-variant of the Omicron mutation, is still the majority and progresses very quickly: from 73% of cases in S10, it concerns 84% of cases in S11.
- Vaccination against Covid-19 is still progressing: as of March 28, 2022, 79.5% of the total population had received a complete primary vaccination and 73.2% of those aged 18 and over had received a booster dose and 83.2% among those aged 65 and over, which remains significantly the same situation as during the last epidemiological update of March 24, 2022.
Follow the evolution of the coronavirus in your municipality thanks to the map below. Click on a department to display the list of municipalities. Also find all the details on this mapping and the complete point by city and by department in our article on the Covid map in France.
Since mid-October 2020, Public Health France has been communicating incidence data (number of cases per 100,000 inhabitants) at municipal level. The figures are at this stage communicated according to a scale (10, 20, 50, 150, 250, 500, 1000 cases per 100,000 inhabitants). The data is expressed over a rolling week, which means that it is calculated on a D-day from tests carried out between 3 and 9 days previously. To access information relating to the coronavirus in your municipality, enter its name in the search engine or click on its department in the map below.
As a reminder, the incidence rate corresponds to the number of new cases of Covid-19 over a period of one week, compared to the total population of a territory (country, region, department or municipality). This indicator is generally expressed as the number of cases per 100,000 inhabitants. The screening rate gives the number of people having carried out a screening test for the coronavirus out of the total number of inhabitants, during the period. It is also most often expressed per 100,000 inhabitants. Finally, the test positivity rate gives the percentage of positive tests for the coronavirus, compared to the total number of tests carried out over the period.