Influenza: the epidemic intensifies, the elderly strongly affected.

The epidemic of seasonal influenza intensified last week, with a "very strong increase" of the passages to the emergencies and the hospitalizations of elderly people, said Wednesday Public Health France.
Between December 26 and January 1, 5,745 people went to the emergencies for flu-like symptoms, compared with 4,220 the previous week, and 1,035 had to be hospitalized against 617 between December 19 and 25, says the health agency in its bulletin weekly. 
Seniors are the most affected
Hospitalizations for influenza mainly concerned elderly people and especially those aged 80 and over who accounted for 63% of hospital admissions.
169 outbreaks of infections have also been observed in communities of the elderly, a figure rising for two weeks and which "confirms the particular vigilance to maintain" in this type of structures, notes Public Health France.
Since 1 November, 381 severe cases of influenza have been admitted to the intensive care unit and 22 have died, figures also rising sharply, even though the epidemic has intensified in almost all metropolitan areas.
The flu has exceeded the epidemic threshold for the third week in a row, with 398 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, compared with 307 the previous week, said the Sentinel surveillance network which indicates that 578,000 people have consulted a general practitioner since the beginning of the 'epidemic. 
44% of patients in intensive care were not vaccinated
The regions most affected last week were the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region with 783 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, ahead of Burgundy-France-Comté (629 cases) and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (571 cases), Sentinels.
99% of the influenza viruses observed so far are type A, 96% type A (H3N2), similar to or identical to one of the strains contained in this year's vaccine.
The majority of patients admitted to intensive care last week had risk factors and 44% were unvaccinated.

An epidemic of which it is too early to assess the severity.
Healthcare France also notes that at the national level, mortality is rising "at all ages and especially among the elderly" but that the share of mortality attributable to influenza "can not currently be determined".
The increase concerns mainly the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, according to data not yet consolidated.
During a visit to the emergency room of a Parisian hospital on 27 December, health minister Marisol Touraine said that the 2016-17 epidemic would be "quantitatively significant" but that it was still "too early for Assess its seriousness ".
The epidemic of seasonal influenza, due to a very contagious virus, lasts on average nine weeks, according to the historical data of Sentinels since 1984. But in 2009-2010 it had spread over 16 weeks. Last winter it had affected about 3 million people in total.