Monitoring COVID‐19 and Influenza: The Added Value of a Severe Acute Respiratory Infection Surveillance System in Portugal

Abstract

In the 2021/2022 season, the Portuguese SARI sentinel surveillance system pilot was able to early detect the COVID-19 epidemic peak and the increase of influenza activity. Although cardiovascular manifestations associated with influenza infection are known, more seasons of surveillance are needed, to confirm the potential use of cardiovascular hospitalizations as an indicator of influenza activity.