Publication
Title
Current and future perspectives for wastewater-based epidemiology as a monitoring tool for pharmaceutical use
Author
Abstract
The medical and societal consequences of the misuse of pharmaceuticals clearly justify the need for comprehensive drug utilization research (DUR). Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) employs the analysis of human metabolic excretion products in wastewater to monitor consumption patterns of xenobiotics at the population level. Recently, WBE has demonstrated its potential to evaluate lifestyle factors such as illicit drug, alcohol and tobacco consumption at the population level, in near real-time and with high spatial and temporal resolution. Up until now there have been fewer WBE studies investigating health biomarkers such as pharmaceuticals. WBE publications monitoring the consumption of pharmaceuticals were systematically reviewed from three databases (PubMed, Web of Science and Google Scholar). 64 publications that reported population-normalised mass loads or defined daily doses of pharmaceuticals were selected. We document that WBE could be employed as a complementary information source for DUR. Interest in using WBE approaches for monitoring pharmaceutical use is growing but more foundation research (e.g. compound-specific uncertainties) is required to link WBE data to routine pharmacoepidemiologic information sources and workflows. WBE offers the possibility of i) estimating consumption of pharmaceuticals through the analysis of human metabolic excretion products in wastewater; ii) monitoring spatial and temporal consumption patterns of pharmaceuticals continuously and in near real-time; and iii) triangulating data with other DUR information sources to assess the impacts of strategies or interventions to reduce inappropriate use of pharmaceuticals.
Language
English
Source (journal)
The science of the total environment. - Amsterdam, 1972, currens
Publication
Amsterdam : 2021
ISSN
0048-9697 [print]
1879-1026 [online]
DOI
10.1016/J.SCITOTENV.2021.148047
Volume/pages
789 (2021) , 13 p.
Article Reference
148047
ISI
000677550800012
Pubmed ID
34323839
Medium
E-only publicatie
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
Full text (open access)
Full text (publisher's version - intranet only)
UAntwerpen
Faculty/Department
Research group
Project info
Europe-wide Sewage analysis to Monitor Emerging drug problems (EuSeME).
Publication type
Subject
Affiliation
Publications with a UAntwerp address
External links
Web of Science
Record
Identifier
Creation 03.06.2021
Last edited 02.10.2024
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