2023-12-30 10:00:00
At holiday times, the fear of infecting loved ones is greater. And according to health professionals and the latest figures, this fear is justified.
“It’s simple, I spent Christmas on my stairs.” While the end of year celebrations are often synonymous with reunions and moments of sharing, some have had to do without them, not without bitterness. “I had a hospital appointment scheduled for December 20, but last night, I had a bad night, with fever and cough. Honestly, I wasn’t thinking regarding Covid,” says Pierre. However, the test is unequivocal. The forty-year-old is very positive.
Twice more than last year
And according to the figures, he is not the only one who had to isolate himself during the holidays. “One in four tests turns out to be positive. That’s twice as many as usual,” explains Kévin Acriz, pharmacist at the Comédie pharmacy. And even if according to Public Health France, the trend has decreased in Occitanie compared to the week of December 21 (570 screening procedures for suspected or confirmed Covid out of 10,000 consultations in private medicine as of December 28, compared to 637 procedures last week; and 434 visits to the emergency room, 40% of which were followed by hospitalization compared to 521 visits last week and 41% hospitalization), Covid continues to strike. In medico-social establishments, the report specifies that “the weekly number of episodes of grouped cases of COVID-19 declared has remained at a high level since mid-November (more than 20 episodes per week). These episodes occurred mainly in accommodation establishments for dependent elderly people (Ehpad)”, we can read.
Increase in cases of bronchiolitis, shortage of antibiotics
“It’s horrible to have to tell parents whose children have bronchiolitis that we don’t have any antibiotics to give them,” laments Kévin Acriz. The medication is particularly prescribed during a bacterial superinfection. And yet, they have no other choice since the antibiotic shortage which began this fall does not seem to be going away according to pharmacists. And there are more cases of bronchiolitis than last year. “And we can’t even say when we will be supplied,” his colleague also regrets.
One of the reasons for this increase can be explained by increased screening demand during this period. “We are looking at an increase of around 20% because people are going to reunite with their families,” explains Thomas Galet, pharmacist at the Opéra Les Trois Grâces pharmacy.
An earlier flu epidemic
But Covid is not the only virus that disrupts the winter period. “Last year, the first cases of flu arrived in mid-January. There, at the beginning of December, the epidemic had already started,” continues Kévin Acriz. “And this year, we are seeing that there are more infections with the bacteria Mycoplasma pneumoniae. It is a virus that spreads in the air and is cyclical, every three to five years,” adds his colleague. . However, vaccination is far from optimal. “Only 50% of target people are vaccinated,” specifies the Comédie pharmacist.
Both point out that vaccination can be done in pharmacies, without an appointment. “And there is still time. There are still a good twenty days left to get vaccinated and for immunity to be effective,” he continues. And the pharmacist from the Opéra Les Trois Grâces adds: “As with Covid, we are not vaccinated only for ourselves, but also to protect our loved ones. So even those who are not the target audience can be vaccinated” . Please note, however, that for these people, vaccination is not reimbursed by Social Security.
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