What is it about?
Monkeypox viral DNA has been detected in wastewater in Bangkok, Thailand, with concentrations increasing from June to August 2022. The virus was found in non-sewered systems in commercial and public venues, indicating potential clusters and transmission. Wastewater-based surveillance could be a valuable tool for monitoring the virus in communities, and even with limited testing, the virus was detected in wastewater.
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Why is it important?
This study shows that wastewater-based surveillance can be a valuable tool for monitoring the spread of the monkeypox virus in communities, even in areas with limited testing and poor sewer infrastructure. The detection of monkeypox viral DNA in wastewater suggests potential clusters and transmission, providing early warning of outbreaks and identifying areas that require more targeted interventions to prevent further transmission. Additionally, the study highlights the potential for more individuals carrying the virus in the community than reported cases, indicating the need for increased testing and access to diagnostics. Overall, the study provides valuable insights into the use of wastewater-based surveillance for detecting emerging infectious diseases in densely populated areas with limited resources.
Perspectives
The detection of monkeypox viral DNA in wastewater in Bangkok, Thailand, highlights the potential of wastewater-based surveillance as a tool for early detection and monitoring of emerging infectious diseases in densely populated areas with poor sewer infrastructure. The study underscores the importance of continued efforts to improve wastewater surveillance and testing capacity in low-resource settings and highlights the need for increased access to testing and diagnostics to identify individuals carrying the virus in the community. The findings suggest that wastewater-based surveillance could provide a valuable complement to existing disease surveillance systems, enabling more proactive and targeted public health interventions to control outbreaks and prevent further transmission.
Charin Modchang
Mahidol University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Multiple traces of monkeypox detected in non-sewered wastewater with sparse sampling from a densely populated metropolitan area in Asia, The Science of The Total Environment, February 2023, Elsevier,
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.159816.
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