Snapshot of COVID-19 superinfections in Marseille hospitals: where are the common pathogens?

Abstract Episodes of bacterial superinfections have been well identified for several respiratory viruses, notably influenza.

In this retrospective study, we compared the frequency of superinfections in COVID-19 patients to those found in influenza-positive patients, and to controls without viral infection.

We included 42 468 patients who had been diagnosed with COVID-19 and 266 261 subjects who had tested COVID-19 negative between 26 February 2020 and 1 May 2021.

In addition, 4059 patients were included who had tested positive for the influenza virus between 1 January 2017 and 31 December 2019.

Bacterial infections in COVID-19 patients were more frequently healthcare-associated, and acquired in ICUs, were associated with longer ICU stays, and occurred in older and male patients when compared to controls and to influenza patients ( P < 0.0001 for all).

The most common pathogens proved to be less frequent in COVID-19 patients, including fewer cases of bacteraemia involving E. coli ( P < 0.0001) and Klebsiella pneumoniae ( P = 0.027) when compared to controls.

In respiratory specimens Haemophilus influenzae ( P < 0.0001) was more frequent in controls, while Streptococcus pneumoniae ( P < 0.0001) was more frequent in influenza patients.

Likewise, species associated with nosocomial transmission, such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus epidermidis , were more frequent among COVID-19 patients.

Finally, we observed a high frequency of Enterococcus faecalis bacteraemia among COVID-19 patients, which were mainly ICU-acquired and associated with a longer timescale to acquisition.