review · International Journal of Environmental Health Research
A systematic review and meta-analysis of 239 studies investigated the presence of adenoviruses across global water environments. The overall prevalence of the virus was found to be 59.2 per cent across all tested sources. Adenoviruses were most common in wastewater, appearing in 83.1 per cent of untreated samples and 75.3 per cent of treated samples. They were also detected in surface water, drinking water, and groundwater, with both human and animal strains present. However, because the majority of evaluated studies did not assess whether the detected viruses were viable and infectious, the precise health risks associated with contamination remain uncertain. Despite this limitation, the results indicate that water environments, including drinking water supplies, represent a potentially significant transmission route in both developed and developing economies.
Adenoviruses cause widespread human and animal infections, and their frequent detection in treated wastewater and drinking water raises public health concerns. Understanding how commonly these viruses occur in water supplies helps water management authorities and health organisations recognise potential transmission pathways and identify where current monitoring fails to confirm whether detected viruses are actually infectious.
This early-stage epidemiological evidence could inform water utilities and public health agencies seeking to evaluate water safety and treatment efficacy. The finding that most studies fail to assess viral viability highlights a clear gap for developers of viability-testing assays and monitoring tools. However, the abstract provides review data rather than an applied tool or prototype, placing direct commercial applications at an early stage.
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Adenoviruses (AdVs) have a significant impact in both medical and environmental contexts. The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of AdV in different water types, such as untreated and treated wastewater, surface water, groundwater, drinking water, and other water matrices. A total of 239 articles were included in this meta-analysis. Adenoviruses were detected in various waters worldwide. The overall prevalence in water was found to be 59.2%, with the highest prevalence in untreated wastewater (83.1%) and treated wastewater (75.3%), followed by "other water matrices" (53.4%), surface water (49.5%) drinking water (22.7%), and groundwater (18.5%). Most of the studies did not assess the viability of the viruses, leading to weak links between water contamination and risk. Both human and animal AdV were found in water environments. The findings suggest that water, including drinking water, could be a significant route of AdV transmission in both developed and developing economies.
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DOI: 10.1080/09603123.2023.2255559
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