Ohio testing sewage for COVID-19 as ’early warning’ system

COLUMBUS — To help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in the state, Gov. Mike DeWine announced a new initiative by the state to test sewage for coronavirus to help find earlier warning signs to show the viruses spread in a community.

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“The increase of COVID-19 cases in communities is typically tracked by testing people with symptoms, an indicator that lags behind the actual spread of the disease. Because of this, there is a need to use early monitoring methods that estimate the disease’s impact on the broader community,” according to the Ohio Department of Health.

The sewage monitoring network includes several testing sites across the state, including three sites in the Dayton area, one in Mercer County and one in Springfield. The state said it has plans to expand the program, which is a joint venture between ODH, Ohio and U.S. EPA, Ohio Water Resources Center and several universities.

According to the state, the wastewater entering treatment plants across the state will be sampled for fragments of the virus.

“This sample is analyzed by a laboratory to determine the number of virus gene copies present, related to the wastewater flow that occurred on the sample day and the population that contributed to the flow. Based on current research, these virus fragments are not infectious at this sample collection point,” ODH said.

The results, which will allow health officials to review the viral gene copies present in the sewage, will serve as an indicator that cases may be increasing or decreasing in the community.

“Because infected individuals can continue to shed the virus RNA in feces for 20 to 30 days after they are no longer infectious, decreases in the number of viral gene copies in wastewater might lag behind decreases in cases in a community,” according to ODH. “Trends in viral gene copies should be considered along with community case numbers and other COVID-19-related data to inform decisions about taking actions to help limit disease spread.”

The state says the new system will help improve public health with the following:

• Serve as an early warning of infection in communities or congregate settings.
• Provide information that can help local communities more quickly intervene with protective measures to slow disease spread.
• Help communities measure the effectiveness of such interventions (quarantine/face coverings/business limitations).
• Develop methodologies/predictive models to translate viral loads detected for comparison with other data, such as rates or percentage of infection in communities.
• Where possible, compare results to previously collected data on prevalence in specific communities to better understand factors affecting disease spread.
• Determine impacts on disproportionately affected communities or communities where risk of infection is greater.

Results from the testing will be shared on the Coronavirus Ohio website.

Cox Media Group