A continued increase, which could soon worry health authorities. The bronchiolitis epidemic, which mainly affects babies, has resumed its progression in recent days after a break linked to the school holidays, Public Health France announced this Wednesday, November 22. All mainland regions are now classified in the epidemic phase, with the exception of Corsica. Overseas, Guadeloupe, Martinique and Guyana also remain affected by the epidemic, as does Mayotte.
Last week, “bronchiolitis activity in children under two years old was increasing in the city and in hospitals,” summarized the public health agency. in his weekly report. This therefore marks a resumption after a break at the beginning of November, attributed by Public Health France to school holidays, likely to reduce contact between children in the community.
A treatment that brings hope
Bronchiolitis, caused primarily by respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), causes breathing difficulties in babies. Affecting 30% of children aged 1 month to 2 years each year according to Santé Publique France – or 480,000 cases per year – it generally remains harmless. It can nevertheless lead to visits to the emergency room and hospitalizations. Last year, it was the cause of an unprecedented epidemic in more than ten years, sending tens of thousands of infants to hospital.
One of the main questions lies in the effect that a new preventive treatment will have, Beyfortus, marketed by Sanofi, which has met with strong support from parents. Even to the point of being a victim of its success.
Initially offered to all babies born since February, its deliveries were quickly restricted. The Minister of Health, Aurélien Rousseau, announced this Sunday in The world the order of 50,000 new doses from Sanofi. He also judged last week that Beyfortus was already proving its worth in hospitalization figures. Even if pediatricians, for their part, remain more measured overall and consider such conclusions too early.
Fewer hospitalizations
Visits to the emergency room for bronchiolitis are certainly less frequent than last year, which was particularly harsh, but the change is hardly noticeable compared to previous seasons. On the other hand, these passages seem less often to lead to hospitalizations, particularly in intensive care units for the most serious cases.
Public Health France also provided an assessment of two other diseases: Covid, which is showing some signs of recovery, and seasonal flu, still limited to a few sporadic cases in mainland France while awaiting the inevitable annual epidemic.