Social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a marked decrease in hospitalisations for bronchiolitis

Bronchiolitis is the most common acute viral infection of the lower airways in infants and the main cause of hospitalisation and death from viral infections in western countries. The worldwide COVID-19 pandemic has led to most countries adopting social distancing measures and population movement restrictions to reduce transmission of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection. During the 2020-2021 winter season, social distancing and mask use altered the spread of common viral respiratory infections, reducing the incidence of winter epidemics