Neighborhood-level sampling could close equity gap in wastewater disease surveillance

AI Summary

A study highlights that neighborhood-level wastewater disease surveillance can address equity gaps seen during the COVID-19 pandemic by more accurately monitoring vulnerable communities. However, blind spots remain, challenging equitable public health efforts.

Wastewater surveillance was hailed during the COVID-19 pandemic as a more equitable way to track disease. It provided a system that could monitor entire communities regardless of whether residents had access to a doctor or a test. But a study published in the American Journal of Public Health finds that wastewater surveillance carries its own built-in blind spots, and the communities bearing the brunt are the ones already most vulnerable.