Comparison of pathogen-derived 'total risk' with indicator-based correlations for recreational (swimming) exposure.

Comparison of pathogen-derived 'total risk' with indicator-based correlations for recreational (swimming) exposure. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2018 Apr 11;: Authors: Sunger N, Hamilton KA, Morgan PM, Haas CN Abstract Typical recreational water risk to swimmers is assessed using epidemiologically derived correlations by means of fecal indicator bacteria (FIB). It has been documented that concentrations of FIB do not necessarily correlate well with protozoa and viral pathogens, which pose an actual threat of illness and thus sometimes may not adequately assess the overall microbial risks from water resources. Many of the known pathogens have dose-response relationships; however, measuring water quality for all possible pathogens is impossible. In consideration of a typical freshwater receiving secondarily treated effluent, we investigated the level of consistency between the indicator-derived correlations and the sum of risks from six reference pathogens using a quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) approach. Enterococci and E. coli were selected as the benchmark FIBs, and norovirus, human adenovirus (HAdV), Campylobacter jejuni, Salmonella enterica, Cryptosporidium spp., and Giardia spp. were selected as the reference pathogens. Microbial decay rates in freshwater and uncertainties in exposure relationships were considered in developing our analysis. Based on our exploratory assessment, the total risk was found within the ran...
Source: Environmental Science and Pollution Research International - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Tags: Environ Sci Pollut Res Int Source Type: research