A new statewide system will monitor wastewater to try to provide early warning of COVID-19 outbreaks.
Wastewater sampling has been used to detect outbreaks of other diseases, like polio, in the past. The wastewater samples will be analyzed to measure the level of the virus, which could provide information on local outbreaks, and then sequenced to determine which variants are present.
SIU Associate Professor Keith Gagnon, whose lab has been sequencing the virus throughout the pandemic, said only the most common variants will be detected using this method. However, he said it is still a valuable tool.
“The value is early detection,” he said. “It's believed you can probably detect maybe an outbreak or a growing number of cases much quicker than waiting for people to show up to the hospital or get tested.”
The state will begin sampling in 10 counties, including Franklin, Jefferson, and Lawrence counties, with plans to expand to 35 counties by midsummer and all Illinois counties by the end of the year.
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