Evaluation of Detection Methods for Wastewater Surveillance of Antimicrobial-Resistant Bacteria from Healthcare Facilities.

Authors

Ean Warren, James VanDerslice, L Scott Benson, William J Brazelton, Windy Tanner, Amanda K Lyons, Florence Whitehill, Angela Coulliette-Salmond, Sydney Fusco, Jennifer Weidhaas

Published in

Emerging infectious diseases. Volume 32. Issue 13. Jul 31, 2026. Epub Jul 31, 2026.

Abstract

Carbapenem resistance in bacteria is an urgent public health threat. Wastewater surveillance could support antimicrobial resistance monitoring at long-term care facilities. We assessed feasibility of wastewater sampling at such facilities for carbapenemase genes (bla_KPC, bla_VIM, bla_OXA-48-like, bla_NDM, and bla_IMP) detected by quantitative PCR or GeneXpert Carba-R (Cepheid, https://www.cepheid.com) over 16 months and compared those findings with those for clinical infections. The bla_KPC, bla_OXA-48-like, and bla_VIM genes were routinely detected in composite wastewater samples, passive samples, and sewer biofilm swab specimens. Wastewater and sewer biofilm resistomes differed, but both contained bla_KPC, bla_VIM, and bla_IMP. Wastewater surveillance for carbapenemases shows promise, but few clinical infections during the study period and contributions from sewer biofilms complicate correlations between wastewater measurements and clinical incidence, underscoring the need for further research.

PMID:
42536798
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 01 Aug 2026.

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