Evaluation of Influenza, Sars Cov-2, and Its Co-Infection at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Coimbatore

Influenza and COVID-19 are highly contagious and threatening respiratory viruses that may cause acute respiratory illness and have a high fatality rate. Despite the fact that the Influenza and COVID-19 epidemic was coming to an end, occasional occurrences of new strains were documented across the world. However, throughout the pandemic, there was no seasonal focus on micro-level influenza monitoring. To properly evaluate the threat of Influenza and COVID-19, we conducted a study from April 2022 to June 2023 in a tertiary care hospital in Coimbatore, which would allow us to determine the sessional spread. From April 2022 to June 2023, 270 oropharyngeal swabs were collected and examined for Influenza virus and COVID-19 using ICMR NIV Influenza and SARS CoV-2 Multiplex combo Real-time PCR. In addition, epidemiological data for those clinical samples (ILI/SARI) was obtained. 270 samples tested for Influenza and COVID-19, 5 [1.85%] were positive for influenza A H1N1 and 1 [0.37%] for influenza B Victoria. Influenza A H3N2 and Influenza B Yamagata tested negative during 2022, however, COVID-19 tested positive 7 (3.8%). The study revealed a peak in influenza AH1N1-positive cases in August, September, and October 2022, with males predominating in the 0-12 year age group. COVID-19 positive cases were reported in September, with A[H1N1] subtypes becoming prevalent in 2022-2023.