The data from wastewater samples can help communities detect the virus early on.
Friday. Data from the water samples can help communities detect the virus early on, and is now published to the CDC's COVID Data Tracker.
"The advantage of this CDC-supported dashboard is that it allows you to compare data across states directly," Kirby said. According to Kirby, between 40 and 80% of people with COVID-19 shed viral RNA in their feces. Research has shown that such shedding begins"very early" after infection — it is one of the first signs of having the virus, she said. The wastewater data does not affect access to healthcare or the availability of clinical testing, she said.
She did note that wastewater data comes with its limitations: surveillance cannot be used to determine if communities are entirely free from COVID-19, and is limited in areas where there is minimal or no sewer infrastructure. The wastewater data can also be skewed in transient populations, including parts of the country with a lot of tourists.