ReviewThe Science of the total environment2022
Wastewater, waste, and water-based epidemiology (WWW-BE): A novel hypothesis and decision-support tool to unravel COVID-19 in low-income settings?
Review in The Science of the total environment, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers.
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Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed.
- Advancing health equity in wastewater-based epidemiology: A global critical review and conceptual framework.SSM - population health · 2025Review
- A Review of Wastewater-Based Epidemiology for the SARS-CoV-2 Virus in Rural, Remote, and Resource-Constrained Settings Internationally: Insights for Implementation, Research, and Policy for First Nations in Canada.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2024Review
- Protocol for detection of pathogenic enteric RNA viruses by regular monitoring of environmental samples from wastewater treatment plants using droplet digital PCR.Science in One Health · 2024Article
- Environmental monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 in the metropolitan area of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul (RS), Brazil.Environmental science and pollution research international · 2024Article
- Assessment of sewer connectivity in the United States and its implications for equity in wastewater-based epidemiology.PLOS global public health · 2024Article
- Population infection estimation from wastewater surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 in Nagpur, India during the second pandemic wave.PloS one · 2024Article
- Dependency of sanitation infrastructure on the discharge of faecal coliform and SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA in wastewater from COVID and non-COVID hospitals in Dhaka, Bangladesh.The Science of the total environment · 2023Article
- Molecular testing devices for on-site detection of E. coli in water samples.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Article
- Waste management, COVID-19 and occupational safety and health: Challenges, insights and evidence.The Science of the total environment · 2022Article
- First case of SARS-CoV-2 RNA detection in municipal solid waste leachate from Brazil.The Science of the total environment · 2022Article
- Utilization of SARS-CoV-2 Wastewater Surveillance in Africa-A Rapid Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
1 author.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Traditional wastewater-based epidemiology (W-BE) relying on SARS-CoV-2 RNA detection in wastewater is attractive for understanding COVID-19. Yet traditional W-BE based on centralized wastewaters excludes putative SARS-CoV-2 reservoirs such as: (i) wastewaters from shared on-site sanitation facilities, (ii) solid waste including faecal sludge from non-flushing on-site sanitation systems, and COVID-19 personal protective equipment (PPE), (iii) raw/untreated water, and (iv) drinking water supply systems in low-income countries (LICs). A novel hypothesis and decision-support tool based on Wastewater (on-site sanitation, municipal sewer systems), solid Waste, and raw/untreated and drinking Water-based epidemiology (WWW-BE) is proposed for understanding COVID-19 in LICs. The WWW-BE conceptual framework, including components and principles is presented. Evidence on the presence of SARS-CoV-2 and its proxies in wastewaters, solid materials/waste (papers, metals, fabric, plastics), and raw/untreated surface water, groundwater and drinking water is discussed. Taken together, wastewaters from municipal sewer and on-site sanitation systems, solid waste such as faecal sludge and COVID-19 PPE, raw/untreated surface water and groundwater, and drinking water systems in LICs act as potential reservoirs that receive and harbour SARS-CoV-2, and then transmit it to humans. Hence, WWW-BE could serve a dual function in estimating the prevalence and potential transmission of COVID-19. Several applications of WWW-BE as a hypothesis and decision support tool in LICs are discussed. WWW-BE aggregates data from various infected persons in a spatial unit, hence, putatively requires less resources (analytical kits, personnel) than individual diagnostic testing, making it an ideal decision-support tool for LICs. The novelty, and a critique of WWW-BE versus traditional W-BE are presented. Potential challenges of WWW-BE include: (i) biohazards and biosafety risks, (ii) lack of expertise, analytical equipment, and accredited laboratories, and (iii) high uncertainties in estimates of COVID-19 cases. Future perspectives and research directions including key knowledge gaps and the application of novel and emerging technologies in WWW-BE are discussed.
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