Double infection of Covid-19 and flu can be lethal, finds study

Scientists are finding how Covid-19 infection reacts in an environment of other disease-causing viruses and found that adults who are hospitalised with both Covid and flu are at higher risk of serious illness and two times the risk of succumbing to the infections. 

The research conducted by the University of Edinburg, the University of Liverpool studied 305,000 hospitalized Covid-19 patients and found that nearly 7,000 had respiratory viral co-infections with 227 of these patients simultaneously having seasonal influenza and COVID-19. The research was published in The Lancet on Friday.

Moreover, such cases in which patients had both Covod-19 and influenza were four times more likely to need ventilation during their hospital stay and such patients are 2.4 times more likely to die than patients hospitalized with just COVID-19.

Calum Semple, one of the researchers behind the study and Professor of outbreak medicine at the University of Liverpool said in a press release on Monday that an uptick in the number of cases with seasonal respiratory viruses was noticed as people return to normal mixing. Hence, the chances of people contracting the flu when Covid-19 is still in circulation are more.

The research is the largest-ever study of people with COVID-19 and other endemic respiratory viruses.

Researchers, however, are surprised that the risk of death is more than double when people were infected by both flu and COVID-19 viruses.

Researchers hope this study will help the healthcare system to better prepare for the flu season

The study, notes that the cases of co-infection are not very common, but patients need to test for influenza virus as well for better management. The study also reiterated the importance of Covid-19 vaccination and seasonal flu shots.