Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Dec 7;14(12):2730.
doi: 10.3390/v14122730.

Influenza A Outbreaks in Two Professional Ice Hockey Teams during COVID-19 Epidemic

Niklas Lindblad  1 , Timo Hänninen  2 , Maarit Valtonen  3 , Olli J Heinonen  1 , Matti Waris  4   5 , Olli Ruuskanen  6
Affiliations

Influenza A Outbreaks in Two Professional Ice Hockey Teams during COVID-19 Epidemic

Niklas Lindblad et al. Viruses. .

Abstract

Influenza A outbreaks occurred in two professional hockey teams just after two games they played against each other. Thirteen players and two staff members fell ill during 17-20 April 2022, while COVID-19 was prevalent. Altogether, seven players missed an important game due to influenza. The rapid diagnosis permitted effective pharmaceutical and nonpharmaceutical control of the outbreaks.

Keywords: athlete; exercise; ice hockey; influenza; respiratory virus.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Timeline of influenza A virus outbreak in two ice hockey teams and background occurrence of respiratory viruses in the community as reported from the Hospital District of Southwest Finland. SARS-CoV-2 numbers result from community surveillance and diagnosis of hospital patients, numbers of influenza A and other viruses from hospital patients only. Teams played against each other on 12, 13, 15, and 16 April, thereafter against other teams. Lines indicate sick players with (solid line) or without (broken line) confirmed influenza A virus. Other viruses (n) included rhinovirus (4), human metapneumovirus (4), and seasonal coronaviruses 229E (2) and NL63 (1). * Positive specimens/tests performed.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Ruuskanen O., Luoto R., Valtonen M., Heinonen O.J., Waris M. Respiratory viral infections in athletes: Many unanswered questions. Sports Med. 2022;52:2013–2021. doi: 10.1007/s40279-022-01660-9. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Snyders C., Pyne D.B., Sewry N., Hull J.H., Kaulback K., Schwellnus M. Acute respiratory illness and return to sport: A systematic review and meta-analysis by a subgroup of the IOC consensus on ‘acute respiratory illness in the athlete’. Br. J. Sports Med. 2022;56:223–231. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2021-104719. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Valtonen M., Waris M., Luoto R., Mjøsund K., Kaikkonen M., Heinonen O.J., Ruuskanen O. Non-SARS-CoV-2 respiratory viruses in athletes at major winter sport events, 2021 and 2022. Emerg. Infect. Dis. 2022;28:2096–2099. doi: 10.3201/eid2810.220478. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Gluckman T.J., Bhave N.M., Allen L.A., Chung E.H., Spatz E.S., Ammirati E., Baggish A.L., Bozkurt B., Cornwell W.K., Harmon K.G., et al. 2022 ACC expert consensus decision pathway on cardiovascular sequelae of COVID-19 in adults: Myocarditis and other myocardial involvement, post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection, and return to play: A report of the American College of Cardiology Solution Set Oversight Committee. J. Am. Coll. Cardiol. 2022;79:1717–1756. doi: 10.1016/j.jacc.2022.02.003. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Tokars J.I., Olsen S.J., Reed C. Seasonal incidence of symptomatic influenza in the United States. Clin. Infect. Dis. 2018;66:1511–1518. doi: 10.1093/cid/cix1060. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types