Epidemiological Characteristics and Co‐Detection Patterns of Rhinovirus (A/B/C) and Influenza A Virus in a Regional Respiratory Cohort in Hunan, China

Objective To characterize the epidemiological profile, coinfection spectrum, and virus–virus association patterns between rhinovirus (RV; A/B/C) and influenza A virus (IAV). Methods We analyzed 8928 respiratory samples collected from April 2023 to December 2025. A quality‐controlled RV analytic cohort ( n = 386) and an IAV‐positive cohort ( n = 422) were used for subtype distribution, coinfection profiling, and observed‐versus‐expected co‐occurrence analysis. Associations were evaluated with Fisher's exact test or chi‐square test, with odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results In the RV cohort, subtype A was dominant (235/386, 60.9%), followed by C (118/386, 30.6%) and B (33/386, 8.5%); mixed subtypes accounted for 1.6% (6/386). Coinfection was common (282/386, 73.1%), and IAV was detected in 14/386 RV‐positive samples. Co‐occurrence analysis showed lower‐than‐expected overlap for IAV‐RV A (0.23% vs. 0.40%), IAV‐RV B (0.029% vs. 0.099%), and IAV‐RV A/B/C overall (0.390% vs. 0.624%), while IAV‐RV C was close to random expectation (0.217% vs. 0.210%). Conclusion RV and IAV exhibited subtype‐dependent interaction patterns in this regional cohort, with apparent mutual exclusion for RV‐A/RV‐B and near‐random coexistence for RV‐C. These findings support subtype‐stratified surveillance and season‐specific prevention strategies.