Publications by authors named "G J Medema"
BackgroundWastewater surveillance may support early and comprehensive detection of infectious diseases' community transmission, particularly in settings where other health surveillance systems provide biased or limited information. Amid the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, deploying passive samplers to monitor targeted populations gained importance. Evaluation of the added public health value of this approach in the field can support its broader adoption.
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- Enteric hepatitis A virus (HAV) often goes unnoticed in children but can severely affect adults; the study aimed to improve surveillance during an outbreak at a primary school.
- Researchers used passive samplers in sewage to detect HAV RNA from November 2022 to March 2023, finding that 25% of samples tested positive and matched the strain from the symptomatic cases.
- The study concludes that sewage monitoring with passive samplers is an effective tool for quickly detecting HAV, identifying unnoticed infections, and enhancing public health responses during outbreaks.
Drinking water distribution systems are increasingly vulnerable to sewage intrusion due to aging water infrastructure and intensifying water stress. While the health risks associated with sewage intrusion have been extensively studied, little is known about the impacts of intruded bacteria and dissolved organic matter (DOM) on microbiology in drinking water. In this dynamic study, we demonstrate that the intrusion of 1 % sewage into tap water resulted in immediate contamination, including an 8-fold increase in biomass (TCC), a 48.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEscherichia coli (E. coli) plays a central role as an indicator for fecal contamination to predict the possible presence of microbial pathogens in drinking water. Current detection methods for E.
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- - The COVID-19 pandemic emphasized the importance of using quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) for enhancing public health protection through modeling infectious disease risks.
- - A recent workshop gathered 41 QMRA experts to outline crucial research priorities such as improving methods, harmonizing environmental monitoring, and integrating different scientific approaches.
- - Key recommendations include building a collaborative research community, enhancing data collection efforts, and ensuring sustainable funding to support the advancement of QMRA for global health policies.