Low circulation of Influenza A and coinfection with SARS‐CoV‐2 among other respiratory viruses during the COVID‐19 pandemic in a region of southern Brazil

Abstract

With the arrival of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) in Brazil in February 2020, several preventive measures were taken by the population aiming to avoid severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) infection including the use of masks, social distancing, and frequent hand washing then, these measures may have contributed to preventing infection also by other respiratory viruses. Our goal was to determine the frequencies of Influenza A and B viruses (FLUAV/FLUBV), human mastadenovirus C (HAdV‐C), Enterovirus 68 (EV‐68), and rhinovirus (RV) besides SARS‐CoV‐2 among hospitalized patients suspect of COVID‐19 with cases of acute respiratory disease syndrome (ARDS) in the period of March to December 2020 and to detect possible coinfections among them. Nucleic acid detection was performed using reverse‐transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT‐qPCR) in respiratory samples using naso‐oropharyngeal swabs and bronchoalveolar lavage. A total of 418 samples of the 987 analyzed (42.3%) were positive for SARS‐CoV‐2, 16 (1.62%) samples were positive for FLUAV, no sample was positive for FLUBV or EV‐68, 67 (6.78%) samples were positive for HAdV‐C, 55 samples were positive for RV 1/2 (26.3%) and 37 for RV 2/2 (13.6%). Coinfections were also detected, including a triple coinfection with SARS‐CoV‐2, FLUAV, and HAdV‐C. In the present work, a very low frequency of FLUV was reported among hospitalized patients with ARDS compared to the past years, probably due to preventive measures taken to avoid COVID‐19 and the high influenza vaccination coverage in the region in which this study was performed.