Published in Journal of Infectious Diseases, a new study has shown that wastewater surveillance can quickly and accurately detect norovirus outbreaks.

For the study, the researchers collected wastewater surveillance data from 76 California wastewater utilities between December 2022 and December 2023. The researchers extracted viral RNA from wastewater samples and quantified norovirus concentrations. The wastewater data was compared against norovirus outbreak data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System (NREVSS) and the California Norovirus Laboratory Network (NLN).

The researchers observed moderate-to-strong correlations between wastewater data and norovirus outbreak data. Additionally, wastewater norovirus data suggested distinct patterns of norovirus activity within California, peaking as early as February 22, 2023 in Southern California, and as late as March 24, 2023 in the San Joaquin Valley. These patterns were not discernable from NLN or NREVSS data.

Overall, the researchers believe that wastewater surveillance data is a useful tool for local health departments pursuing norovirus outbreak investigations.