Analysis of Wastewater Surveillance and Reported COVID-19 Cases in Atlanta Public Schools Restricted; Files Only
Ralph, Keyanna (Summer 2022)
Published
Abstract
Since the beginning of the pandemic, more than 13.9 million children under 18 years of age have been infected with SARS-CoV-2. COVID-19 has resulted in devastating loss of human life and presents an unparalleled challenge for public health as it is currently ranked among the top ten causes of death for children 5-11 years of age. School-aged children are not only susceptible to SARS-CoV-2, but can play a role in transmitting the virus through educational settings. While many wastewater-based surveillance efforts have been used to study the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 throughout college dormitories, there have been few studies employing wastewater epidemiology to analyze COVID prevalence in K-12 school sites while investigating school related factors and community factors that can influence the transmission and detection of SARS-CoV-2 in a school. Three main objectives of this study are to 1). Collect and analyze weekly wastewater samples from selected Atlanta Public Schools and compare the wastewater results from Atlanta Public schools to the weekly reported COVID-19 cases among students (August 2021-March 2022) 2). Understand why specific Atlanta Public Schools have higher SARS-CoV-2 detection rates in wastewater as compared to others, and 3). Investigate each school’s catchment area and socio-demographic characteristics to identify factors that may be linked to positive wastewater outcome and COVID-19 cases in Atlanta Public Schools. Findings from the study analyses revealed that overall, 41% of wastewater samples detected the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in schools and that elementary schools were found to have the highest overall proportion of SARS-CoV-2 detection in wastewater (52%). Concordance between positive wastewater results and reported COVID-19 cases in schools shared a temporal trend consistent with the COVID-19 Omicron surge in Fulton County. Voluntary self-reporting of COVID-19 cases were likely an underestimate. Furthermore, results indicated that COVID-19 self-reported cases, staff vaccination rate, student vaccination rate, school group, and school neighborhood factors such as neighborhood population below poverty, and city council district location shared trends with positive wastewater outcomes in Atlanta Public Schools. Overall poverty rates amongst school neighborhoods were very high (24.4% to 34.9%).
Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1- LITERATURE REVIEW 1
COVID Background 1
Significance of COVID-19 for Children 2
COVID Challenges for Child Education 4
Significance of Wastewater Surveillance 6
CHAPTER 2- RESEARCH OBJECTIVES AND RATIONALE 12
METHODOLOGY 13
Research Design 13
School and Community Characteristics 14
Outcome measures 15
School and Community Site Selection 16
Collection of Wastewater Samples 20
Sample Processing and Analyses 21
Data Analysis 22
CHAPTER 3- RESULTS 24
Description of the study population 24
Description of the School Neighborhood 31
Prevalence of Positive SARS-CoV-2 Wastewater Outcome 35
Relationship between reported COVID cases and wastewater results 36
CHAPTER 4- DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION 40
Major Findings: 40
LIMITATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 45
CONCLUSION 47
REFERENCES 49
About this Master's Thesis
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File download under embargo until 18 September 2025 | 2022-07-22 21:38:13 -0400 | File download under embargo until 18 September 2025 |
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