Extreme heat, visits to the emergency room… what the heatwave has had as consequences in Occitanie

From August 6 to 12, 2024, and in the context of high heat, Météo-France  proposed the classification of 4 departments in the Occitanie region on orange heatwave alert and 8 departments on yellow alert.

From August 6 to 12, 2024, and in the context of high heat, Météo-France proposed the classification of 4 departments in the Occitanie region on orange heatwave alert and 8 departments on yellow alert.

The four departments affected by the orange heatwave alert were Aude, Gard, Hérault and Pyrénées-Orientales. The episode began in Pyrénées-Orientales and then progressed towards the North-East of the Mediterranean rim.

The number of visits to emergency rooms and SOS doctors consultations were of the same order of magnitude over the period from August 6 to 12 as the values ​​usually observed, reports a press release from Public Health.

No unusual increases

In the Oscour® network, no unusual increase in visits to emergency facilities, for all age groups, including those aged 75 and over, was observed between these dates, despite the weather conditions.

During this period, 135 visits for the iCanicule indicator were recorded, representing 0.4% of visits with a coded diagnosis. At the departmental level, 22% of these visits took place in Hérault, 13% in Haute-Garonne, 11% in Hautes-Pyrénées and 10% in Tarn. Regarding hospitalizations after emergency visits for iCanicule, 87 cases were recorded, or 1.5% of hospitalizations, representing 64% of visits for this diagnosis for all ages and 75% for those aged 75 and over.

As for the SOS Médecins associations in the region, no unusual increase in procedures, for all age groups, including those aged 75 and over, was noted over the same period. 25 procedures for the iCanicule indicator were recorded, or 0.6% of procedures with a coded diagnosis. At the departmental level, 60% of these acts were observed in the Pyrénées-Orientales and 28% in Hérault.

Heat is a health risk for the entire population. The observed health impacts highlight the importance of implementing preventive measures to reduce the impact of heat.