Wastewater-Based Epidemiology for Disease Surveillance

Merging of Science & Technology in Research

Chapter 1: Wastewater-Based Epidemiology for Disease Surveillance

Authors: Himadri Sharma

Abstract: Wastewater-Based Epidemiology (WBE) has emerged as a powerful public health surveillance approach capable of monitoring the health status of entire communities through the analysis of wastewater. Human excreta contain a wide range of biological and chemical markers, including pathogens, pharmaceuticals, metabolites, and antimicrobial resistance genes, which are released into sewage systems and can be detected using advanced analytical techniques. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the significance of WBE as a valuable early warning tool, demonstrating that SARS-CoV-2 RNA could be detected in wastewater before increases in clinically confirmed cases were observed. Beyond infectious disease surveillance, WBE has applications in monitoring antimicrobial resistance, tracking substance use patterns, assessing environmental exposures, and supporting public health decision-making. This chapter reviews the principles, methodologies, applications, advantages, challenges, and future prospects of wastewater-based epidemiology. Recent technological developments, including next-generation sequencing, digital PCR, biosensors, and artificial intelligence-based data analysis, are also discussed. The growing integration of WBE into public health systems suggests that it will become an essential component of disease surveillance and outbreak preparedness strategies in the future.