tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Emerg Infect Dis
. 2022 Jul 22;28(9).
doi: 10.3201/eid2809.220476. Online ahead of print.
Tracking Emergence and Spread of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant in Large and Small Communities by Wastewater Monitoring in Alberta, Canada
Casey R J Hubert, Nicole Acosta, Barbara J M Waddell, Maria E Hasing, Yuanyuan Qiu, Meghan Fuzzen, Nathanael B J Harper, María A Bautista, Tiejun Gao, Chloe Papparis, Jenn Van Doorn, Kristine Du, Kevin Xiang, Leslie Chan, Laura Vivas, Puja Pradhan, Janine McCalder, Kashtin Low, Whitney E England, Darina Kuzma, John Conly, M Cathryn Ryan, Gopal Achari, Jia Hu, Jason L Cabaj, Chris Sikora, Larry Svenson, Nathan Zelyas, Mark Servos, Jon Meddings, Steve E Hrudey, Kevin Frankowski, Michael D Parkins, Xiaoli Lilly Pang, Bonita E Lee
Abstract
Wastewater monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 enables early detection and monitoring of the COVID-19 disease burden in communities and can track specific variants of concern. We determined proportions of the Omicron and Delta variants across 30 municipalities covering >75% of the province of Alberta (population 4.5 million), Canada, during November 2021-January 2022. Larger cities Calgary and Edmonton exhibited more rapid emergence of Omicron than did smaller and more remote municipalities. Notable exceptions were Banff, a small international resort town, and Fort McMurray, a medium-sized northern community that has many workers who fly in and out regularly. The integrated wastewater signal revealed that the Omicron variant represented close to 100% of SARS-CoV-2 burden by late December, before the peak in newly diagnosed clinical cases throughout Alberta in mid-January. These findings demonstrate that wastewater monitoring offers early and reliable population-level results for establishing the extent and spread of SARS-CoV-2 variants.
Keywords: COVID-19; Omicron variant; SARS-CoV-2; communities; coronavirus disease; pathogens; public health; respiratory infections; severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; surveillance; variants of concern; viruses; wastewater; zoonoses.
. 2022 Jul 22;28(9).
doi: 10.3201/eid2809.220476. Online ahead of print.
Tracking Emergence and Spread of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant in Large and Small Communities by Wastewater Monitoring in Alberta, Canada
Casey R J Hubert, Nicole Acosta, Barbara J M Waddell, Maria E Hasing, Yuanyuan Qiu, Meghan Fuzzen, Nathanael B J Harper, María A Bautista, Tiejun Gao, Chloe Papparis, Jenn Van Doorn, Kristine Du, Kevin Xiang, Leslie Chan, Laura Vivas, Puja Pradhan, Janine McCalder, Kashtin Low, Whitney E England, Darina Kuzma, John Conly, M Cathryn Ryan, Gopal Achari, Jia Hu, Jason L Cabaj, Chris Sikora, Larry Svenson, Nathan Zelyas, Mark Servos, Jon Meddings, Steve E Hrudey, Kevin Frankowski, Michael D Parkins, Xiaoli Lilly Pang, Bonita E Lee
- PMID: 35867051
- DOI: 10.3201/eid2809.220476
Abstract
Wastewater monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 enables early detection and monitoring of the COVID-19 disease burden in communities and can track specific variants of concern. We determined proportions of the Omicron and Delta variants across 30 municipalities covering >75% of the province of Alberta (population 4.5 million), Canada, during November 2021-January 2022. Larger cities Calgary and Edmonton exhibited more rapid emergence of Omicron than did smaller and more remote municipalities. Notable exceptions were Banff, a small international resort town, and Fort McMurray, a medium-sized northern community that has many workers who fly in and out regularly. The integrated wastewater signal revealed that the Omicron variant represented close to 100% of SARS-CoV-2 burden by late December, before the peak in newly diagnosed clinical cases throughout Alberta in mid-January. These findings demonstrate that wastewater monitoring offers early and reliable population-level results for establishing the extent and spread of SARS-CoV-2 variants.
Keywords: COVID-19; Omicron variant; SARS-CoV-2; communities; coronavirus disease; pathogens; public health; respiratory infections; severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; surveillance; variants of concern; viruses; wastewater; zoonoses.