Preprint Brief Report Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

SARS-CoV-2 and Influenza Virus Coinfections in the Tuscan Population during the 2021/2022 Influenza Season

Giovanna Milano
ORCID logo ,
Serena Marchi
ORCID logo ,
Ilaria Vicenti
ORCID logo ,
Camilla Biba
,
Lia Fiaschi
ORCID logo ,
Claudia Maria Trombetta
ORCID logo ,
Giacomo Lazzeri
ORCID logo ,
Emanuele Montomoli
ORCID logo ,
Ilaria Manini
* ORCID logo
Version 1 : Received: 14 November 2023 / Approved: 15 November 2023 / Online: 15 November 2023 (15:49:46 CET)

How to cite: Milano, G.; Marchi, S.; Vicenti, I.; Biba, C.; Fiaschi, L.; Trombetta, C. M.; Lazzeri, G.; Montomoli, E.; Manini, I. SARS-CoV-2 and Influenza Virus Coinfections in the Tuscan Population during the 2021/2022 Influenza Season. Preprints 2023, 2023111033. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202311.1033.v1 Milano, G.; Marchi, S.; Vicenti, I.; Biba, C.; Fiaschi, L.; Trombetta, C. M.; Lazzeri, G.; Montomoli, E.; Manini, I. SARS-CoV-2 and Influenza Virus Coinfections in the Tuscan Population during the 2021/2022 Influenza Season. Preprints 2023, 2023111033. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202311.1033.v1

Abstract

The 2021/2022 influenza season was not characterised by a well-defined incidence peak. A high value of incidence was recorded in week 13, but it was still lower than in other influenza seasons. This abnormal circulation was probably due to relaxation of the COVID-19 pandemic restriction measures, which greatly reduced the circulation of respiratory-transmitted viruses, including human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV). The symptoms of SARS-CoV-2 and influenza are quite similar, sharing the human-to-human transmission route via respiratory droplets. The aim of this study was to estimate the rate of coinfection with influenza viruses and/or HRSV in SARS-CoV-2-positive subjects (N=940) in a population of central Italy during the 2021/2022 season. A total of 54 cases of coinfection were detected during the study period, 51 cases (5.4%) of SARS-CoV-2 and influenza virus and three cases (0.3%) of SARS-CoV-2 and HRSV coinfection. These results highlight the importance of continuous monitoring of the circulation of influenza virus and other respiratory viruses in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords

coinfection; population; respiratory viruses.

Subject

Public Health and Healthcare, Primary Health Care

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Download PDF

Comments (0)

We encourage comments and feedback from a broad range of readers. See criteria for comments and our Diversity statement.

Leave a public comment
Send a private comment to the author(s)
* All users must log in before leaving a comment
Views 0
Downloads 0
Comments 0
Get PDF Cite Share 0
Bookmark BibSonomy Mendeley Reddit Delicious
×
Alerts
Notify me about updates to this article or when a peer-reviewed version is published.
We use cookies on our website to ensure you get the best experience.
Read more about our cookies here.