Clinical Outcomes Associated with SARS-CoV-2 Co-Infection with Rhinovirus and Adenovirus in Adults-A Retrospective Matched Cohort Study.

(1)

Background

Respiratory co-infections with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and other viruses are common, but data on clinical outcomes and laboratory biomarkers indicative of disease severity are limited. We aimed to compare clinical outcomes and laboratory biomarkers of patients with SARS-CoV-2 alone to those of patients with SARS-CoV-2 and either rhinovirus or adenovirus. (2)

Methods

Hospitalized patients co-infected with SARS-CoV-2 and rhinovirus and patients co-infected with SARS-CoV-2 and adenovirus were matched to patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 alone. Outcomes of interest were the cumulative incidences of mechanical ventilation use, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, 30-day all-cause mortality, and 30-day all-cause readmission from the day of discharge. We also assessed differences in laboratory biomarkers from the day of specimen collection. (3)

Results

Patients co-infected with SARS-CoV-2 and rhinovirus, compared with patients infected with SARS-CoV-2, had significantly greater 30-day all-cause mortality (8/23 (34.8%) vs. 8/69 (11.6%), p = 0.02). Additionally, median alanine transaminase (13 IU/L vs. 24 IU/L, p = 0.03), aspartate transaminase (25 IU/L vs. 36 IU/L, p = 0.04), and C-reactive protein (34.86 mg/L vs. 94.68 mg/L, p = 0.02) on day of specimen collection were significantly lower in patients co-infected with SARS-CoV-2 and rhinovirus in comparison to patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 alone. Clinical outcomes and laboratory markers did not differ significantly between patients with SARS-CoV-2 and adenovirus co-infection and patients with SARS-CoV-2 mono-infection. (4)

Conclusion

SARS-CoV-2 and rhinovirus co-infection, compared with SARS-CoV-2 mono-infection alone, is positively associated with 30-day all-cause mortality among hospitalized patients. However, our lack of significant findings in our analysis of patients with SARS-CoV-2 and adenovirus co-infection may suggest that SARS-CoV-2 co-infections have variable significance, and further study is warranted.