ArticlePloS one2024
Wastewater based epidemiology as a surveillance tool during the current COVID-19 pandemic on a college campus (East Carolina University) and its accuracy in predicting SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks in dormitories.
Article in PloS one, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 5 citations in OpenAlex.
- WEPP: Phylogenetic placement achieves near-haplotype resolution in wastewater-based epidemiology.PLoS computational biology · 2026Article
- A framework for evaluating implementation, impact, and cost-effectiveness of wastewater and environmental surveillance.Frontiers in public health · 2026Review
- Long-Term Sewage Survey of SARS-CoV-2, Influenza A and Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), and Correlation to Human Cases in a City with One Million Inhabitants.Microorganisms · 2025Article
- Public health actions in response to pathogen detection in wastewater and the environment: a scoping review.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The COVID-19 outbreak led governmental officials to close many businesses and schools, including colleges and universities. Thus, the ability to resume normal campus operation required adoption of safety measures to monitor and respond to COVID-19. The objective of this study was to determine the efficacy of wastewater-based epidemiology as a surveillance method in monitoring COVID-19 on a college campus. The use of wastewater monitoring as part of a surveillance program to control COVID-19 outbreaks at East Carolina University was evaluated. During the Spring and Fall 2021 semesters, wastewater samples (N = 830) were collected every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from the sewer pipes exiting the dormitories on campus. Samples were analyzed for SARS-CoV-2 and viral quantification was determined using qRT-PCR. During the Spring 2021 semester, there was a significant difference in SARS-CoV-2 virus copies in wastewater when comparing dorms with the highest number student cases of COVID-19 and those with the lowest number of student cases, (p = 0.002). Additionally, during the Fall 2021 semester it was observed that when weekly virus concentrations exceeded 20 copies per ml, there were new confirmed COVID-19 cases 85% of the time during the following week. Increases in wastewater viral concentration spurred COVID-19 swab testing for students residing in dormitories, aiding university officials in effectively applying COVID testing policies. This study showed wastewater-based epidemiology can be a cost-effective surveillance tool to guide other surveilling methods (e.g., contact tracing, nasal/salvia testing, etc.) to identify and isolate afflicted individuals to reduce the spread of pathogens and potential outbreaks within a community.
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