Thessaloniki – Increased viral load in sewage

The latest measurements of the week for the research conducted by the Sewage Epidemiology Team of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki with sewage management authority EYATH, in collaboration with the Region of Central Macedonia and within the National Network of Thessaloniki, showed an increasing trend in the concentration of SARS-CoV-2 in the municipal waste of Thessaloniki. ΕΟΔΥ.

Specifically, in the samples taken daily at the entrance of the Thessaloniki Wastewater Treatment Plant, regarding the rationalized values ​​of relative secretion of viral load, the average value of the two most recent measurements, ie Wednesday 29/09 and Thursday 30/09 is:

-Increased (+ 28%) compared to the average value of the two immediately preceding measurements on Monday 27/09 and Tuesday 28/09

-Increased (+ 41%) compared to the average price of the previous Wednesday 22/09 and Thursday 23/09

“Throughout September, the epidemiological picture of wastewater was characterized by fluctuations between daily measurements, but around a relatively high level of viral load, which in any case corresponds to a significant spread of the virus in the community. and observing in the relevant chart in the last few days we see that the trend is increasing “, said to news agency APE-MPE the rector of AUTh and scientifically responsible for the research project, Professor Nikos Papaioannou.

“What we see and interpret as a significant spread in the community is a mixture of the sick, which includes the unvaccinated, but also the vaccinated who may be slightly ill, as well as young people and children, who may not show symptoms of the disease, but its current mutation. “Virus dominates this group in terms of transmissibility”, explained Mr. Papaioannou.

Asked if the data foretell a strong epidemiological outbreak in the city, as happened last autumn, the rector of AUTh replied: “public health protection measures [are needed]. The noticeable difference is that now the percentage of vaccinated citizens acts as a shield for themselves and the health system. Many fewer need hospitalization and far fewer of our fellow human beings would be hospitalized today in the ICU, if they had listened to the recommendations of the specialists, if they had rushed to be vaccinated. In any case, the dynamics of the pandemic and the spread of the virus in the community today do not allow anyone to be complacent. ”

The coronavirus assessment methodology in municipal waste, developed by the AUTh team, streamlines the virus genome concentration measurements, based on 24 environmental factors, which may alter the results of the measurements.