“I feel flu!
“Headache, fever, chills, cough… More and more French people are suffering from it lately.
Good news, however: the situation linked to the flu epidemic seems to have improved last week, we learn in the weekly report from Public Health France, published as always on Wednesday.
The number of consultations for flu-like illness decreased by 26% over one week, that of visits to the emergency room by 27%.
Hospitalizations after going to the emergency room for flu syndrome have stabilized (“only” + 3% over one week).
As for the positivity rate for influenza in outpatient medicine, it has decreased by 20 points (45.5% now).
These indicators are still at "high levels", however, insists the national health agency.
Above all, "a rebound is possible after the end-of-year holidays", because these data "are to be interpreted with caution in the context of changes usually observed in the use of care at the end of the year and the current overload of the care delivery,” she adds.
In addition, 4.5% of electronically certified deaths last week were flu-related.
This rate is much higher than the peaks of the two previous annual epidemics.
“Probable that part of the cases of flu-like syndromes are due to Covid-19”
One point is important to know: the numbers of consultations and hospitalizations mentioned do not only concern the flu.
Indeed, “flu syndrome” does not necessarily mean “flu”, an infectious disease that occurs very early this season and is caused by one of the flu viruses in circulation (essentially type A (H3N2)).
This refers to the clinical description, by a city or hospital doctor for example, of the main symptoms of the flu (fever, fatigue, difficulty breathing, etc.).
Except that influenza viruses are not the only ones that can cause them.
We are thinking in particular, of course, of SARS-CoV-2.
Read alsoWhat to think of tests that detect Covid and flu at the same time?
“Some indicators are not based on biological confirmation of influenza infection.
In the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is likely that some of the cases of flu-like illnesses reported by our flu surveillance are due to Covid-19 and not to the flu”, indicates moreover black on white Public Health France in its report.
