Impact of COVID‐19 social distancing on viral infection in France: A delayed outbreak of RSV

Abstract

Introduction COVID‐19 pandemic and associated lockdown measures have deeply modified the natural course of seasonal viral infections, such as respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Methods We analyzed French national data from three networks: emergency departments (ED) of French hospitals, general practitioners (GP), and hospital laboratories. We compared the number of ED or GP visits for bronchiolitis in children <2 years of age, and the percentage of RSV positive tests in the 2020 to 2021 season with those of the two previous seasons (2018–2019 and 2019–2020). We used time series of the previous 5 years to calculate epidemic thresholds. Results During the 2020–2021 season, the epidemic begun in February (Week 05) in the Ile de France (Paris and suburbs) region, 12 weeks later compared with the previous seasons and progressively spread across all the French metropolitan regions. The highest number of bronchiolitis cases in 2021 (Week 12) occurred 10–12 weeks after the previous seasonal peaks of previous seasons, but the number of cases remained lower than in the previous seasonal peaks. Conclusion We identified a delayed RSV epidemic in the period that usually corresponds at the end of the epidemic season, raising concerns for the burden of RSV in the already strained healthcare systems during the COVID‐19 pandemic.

The rising of old foes: impact of lockdown periods on “non-SARS-CoV-2” viral respiratory and gastrointestinal infections

“…Although there were significantly more tests performed overall, initially, there was no increase in virus detection. Nevertheless, following reports from Australia, USA, Finland, and France, the predicted increase of RSV infections in the summer was observed here as well, especially in August–October 2021 [ 4 – 7 ]. This is particularly relevant for children younger than 24 months of age, as severe courses of RSV infection are observed at this age.…”

Fall of Community-Acquired Pneumonia in Children following COVID-19 Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions: A Time Series Analysis

“…The French National Agency (Santé Publique France) reported a diminished respiratory syncytial outbreak in 2020 [20]. The peak of bronchiolitis occurred after a three-month delay and was about 50% as high as previous seasons [21]. The same study reported a stable positivity rate of rhinovirus in patients with bronchiolitis [21].…”

“…The peak of bronchiolitis occurred after a three-month delay and was about 50% as high as previous seasons [21]. The same study reported a stable positivity rate of rhinovirus in patients with bronchiolitis [21]. Furthermore, the influenza epidemic has been slightly shortened in 2020, with NPI being implemented at the very end of the epidemic [22].…”

“…The analysis is limited to the period from January 2017 to December 2020. Our study period did not include the annual RSV outbreak, which was delayed to February-March 2021, but the bronchiolitis outbreak was massively reduced compared to previous seasons [20,21]. For influenza, no outbreak has been observed during the 2020/2021 season [22].…”

Exclusive Breastfeeding and Vitamin D Supplementation: A Positive Synergistic Effect on Prevention of Childhood Infections?

“…Unfortunately, this reduction was only transient, with subsequent rebound during the fall and winter seasons in 2021–2022 [ 72 , 73 , 74 ]. For example, a recently published French study reported a delayed RSV epidemic in the period usually corresponding to the end of the epidemic season [ 75 ].…”