An epidemic of bronchiolitis begins to spread in France. The Hauts-de-France region has been placed in “pre-epidemic”, indicated Public Health France in its latest bulletin. In the rest of France, Île-de-France was in an epidemic and Brittany in a pre-epidemic since last week. “The syndromic indicators linked to bronchiolitis were increasing in the city as well as in the hospital, remaining however at levels lower than those of the last three years. The current dynamic seems similar to that observed during the seasons before the pandemic at the same time. »
In the overseas regions, Guadeloupe and Martinique have been affected by the epidemic since the end of October and Guyana since the end of July.
Bronchiolitis returns every year, during the fall and winter. Babies are most affected, usually after respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection. In total, 1,740 children under the age of two were seen in the emergency room for bronchiolitis. Among them, 542 (31.1%) were hospitalized, of which 511 were aged less than 1 year.
This year, two treatments for bronchiolitis have been deployed: Beyfortus from AstraZeneca and Sanofi, given directly to babies, and Abrysvo from Pfizer, intended for pregnant women.
What is bronchiolitis?
In France, it is estimated that bronchiolitis affects nearly 30% of infants under 2 years old each winter, or around 480,000 cases per year. According to Public Health France, 2 to 3% of infants under 1 year old are hospitalized for more severe bronchiolitis each year. Deaths are very rare and concern 1% of cases.
Bronchiolitis is characterized by nasal congestion with a mild cough sometimes accompanied by a moderate fever. “In infants and children under 2 years old, coughing may become more frequent with the appearance of respiratory discomfort which results in rapid and wheezing breathing. At this stage of the disease, the child may have difficulty eating and sleeping. explains Public Health France. Most of the time, it heals between 5 and 10 days.
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