The Lavatory Lens: Tracking the Global Movement of Pathogens via Aircraft Wastewater

The surveillance of aircraft wastewater has emerged as a promising new data source to screen for SARS-CoV-2 infections, including newly emergent lineages, among international air travelers.

Bivins, A.; Morfino, R.; Franklin, A.; Simpson, S.; Ahmed, W. 

The Lavatory Lens: Tracking the Global Movement of Pathogens via Aircraft Wastewater. Preprints.org 2023, 2023050587.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, public health agencies used multi-layered control strategies including pre-departure testing and vaccination requirements, masking, post-arrival testing, and quarantine to manage the risk of COVID-19 transmission associated with air travel. Simultaneously, the surveillance of aircraft wastewater emerged as a promising new data source to screen for SARS-CoV-2 infections, including newly emergent lineages, among international air travelers. Herein, we review the potential of aircraft wastewater for public health surveillance. The known contributing population and flight itinerary combined with the highly concentrated waste stream and convenient sampling during routine lavatory servicing make aircraft wastewater a strategic opportunity for unintrusive surveillance of the global fluxes of human pathogens.