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. 2022 Mar:116:226-229.
doi: 10.1016/j.ijid.2022.01.018. Epub 2022 Jan 14.

Viral co-pathogens in COVID-19 acute respiratory syndrome - what did we learn from the first year of pandemic?

Or Kriger  1 , Shiraz Gefen-Halevi  2 , Eyal Leshem  3 , Gillian Smollan  2 , Natasha Belausov  2 , Aseel Egbarye  2 , Rawan Khashab  2 , Miran Odeh  2 , Adleen Saffia  2 , Yuval Barak  2 , Oswa Abu Hussein  2 , Rachel Hamias  2 , Yael Aharon  2 , Jacqueline Alfandari  2 , Ital Nemet  4 , Limor Kliker  4 , Hilda Sherbany  4 , Michal Mandelboim  5 , Sharon Amit  2
Affiliations

Viral co-pathogens in COVID-19 acute respiratory syndrome - what did we learn from the first year of pandemic?

Or Kriger et al. Int J Infect Dis. 2022 Mar.

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to describe the distribution of respiratory pathogens and the occurrence of co-pathogens during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: We used a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) panel targeting 23 microorganisms to analyze the oro-pharyngeal samples of patients admitted to our hospital with acute respiratory infection (ARI) between March 1, 2020, and February 28, 2021. We matched 40 to 50 patients who were SARS-CoV-2 positive and SARS-CoV-2 negative per month for age and sex.

Results: A total of 939 patients with multiplex PCR test results were included in the study. Respiratory pathogens where detected in only 8/476 (1.6%) patients with COVID-19 versus 87/463 (18.7%) patients with non-COVID-19 ARI patients. Diversity and rates of pathogens vastly differed from previous years but showed seasonal variance.

Conclusion: Patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection presenting with ARI during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated paucity of respiratory co-pathogens.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; co-infections.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
a - Daily newly diagnosed COVID-19 patients, Israel 2020-2021 b - Annual pathogen distribution of patients with acute respiratory infection, Sheba, 2020-2021
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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