Viral pneumonia is frequently complicated by bacterial co- or superinfection (c/s) with adverse effects on patients' outcomes. However, the incidence of c/s and its impact on the outcomes of patients might be dependent on the type of viral pneumonia. We performed a retrospective observational study in patients with confirmed COVID-19 pneumonia (CP) or influenza pneumonia (IP) from 01/2009 to 04/2022, investigating the incidence of c/s using a competing risk model and its impact on mortality in these patients in a tertiary referral center using multivariate logistic regressions. Co-infection was defined as pulmonary pathogenic bacteria confirmed in tracheal aspirate or bronchoalveolar lavage within 48 h after hospitalization. Superinfection was defined as pulmonary pathogenic bacteria detected in tracheal aspirate or bronchoalveolar lavage 48 h after hospitalization. We examined 114 patients with CP and 76 patients with IP. Pulmonary bacterial co-infection was detected in 15 (13.2%), and superinfection was detected in 50 (43.9%) of CP patients. A total of 5 (6.6%) co-infections (p = 0.2269) and 28 (36.8%) superinfections (p = 0.3687) were detected in IP patients. The overall incidence of c/s did not differ between CP and IP patients, and c/s was not an independent predictor for mortality in a study cohort with a high disease severity. We found a significantly higher probability of superinfection for patients with CP compared to patients with IP (p = 0.0017).
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; acute respiratory distress syndrome; bacterial co- or superinfection; influenza; pneumonia.