Disease Control and Prevention Agency Prevents Infectious Disease Outbreak Risks Through Sewage Testing

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency's Honam Regional Infectious Disease Response Center announced on the 12th that it will strengthen the '2023 Honam Region Wastewater-Based Infectious Disease Surveillance Project' for proactive response, including preventing the spread of overseas-imported infectious diseases into local communities and identifying blind spots in infectious disease surveillance through cooperation with the National Quarantine Station.

A quarantine officer from the National Yeosu Quarantine Station of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency is collecting sewage around the yacht harbor on the 12th.
[Photo by Honam Disease Response Center, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency]

The Honam Region Wastewater-Based Infectious Disease Surveillance Project is conducted in collaboration with the National Quarantine Station to proactively address risk factors for infectious disease outbreaks by monitoring and analyzing overseas infectious disease pathogens that may enter the country through wastewater testing in surveillance blind spots.

In particular, since last year, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency's Honam Regional Infectious Disease Response Center has independently implemented a wastewater-based COVID-19 surveillance system within quarantine zones.

Accordingly, the Honam Regional Infectious Disease Response Center plans to focus on collecting wastewater around the yacht harbor in Yeosu during this month, coinciding with the '2023 Namhaean Cup International Yacht Competition.' Subsequently, using a multiplex detection kit capable of analyzing over 60 types of pathogens, they will conduct tests and share the results with local governments to prevent overseas-imported infectious diseases from spreading into local communities, according to officials.

Yoon Jeong-hwan, director of the Honam Regional Infectious Disease Response Center, stated, "Advanced countries such as the United States have already implemented wastewater-based infectious disease surveillance, and the World Health Organization (WHO) has recognized wastewater surveillance as a new infectious disease monitoring technology by issuing guidelines and recommending wastewater surveillance." He added, "We will enhance wastewater-based infectious disease surveillance to proactively prepare for national infectious disease crises and ensure that no infectious disease blind spots occur within the Honam region."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.