The COVID-19 virus was detected in record-high levels in Durham wastewater this month.
A wastewater treatment plant in South Durham detected 219 million viral gene copies per person on August 7, according to data from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. The plant’s previous record, 131 million copies per person, was set over two years ago in January 2022.
Similarly, at a treatment plant in North Durham, 127 million viral gene copies per person were detected in last week’s sampling. The previous high at the plant was 105 million copies per person in December 2022.
Data from wastewater plants in other parts of the Triangle and the state also show recent spikes.
Jeffrey Jenks, the medical director of the Durham County Department of Public Health, says the wastewater data aligns with a recent increase in emergency room visits and hospitalizations and indicates that cases are surging.
“Because most people aren’t taking PCR tests and getting officially diagnosed, we don’t really have good case rates anymore, so we have to use proxy data to determine how many people are getting COVID,” Jenks says.
The INDY spoke with Jenks to learn more about what’s driving the surge and how to navigate it.
INDY: Why are cases surging during the summer?
We’ve seen increases in COVID infections every summer since this all started in 2020. Similar to what we see in the winter, where people gather inside because it’s cold out, people are gathering inside during the hot summer months because they want to take advantage of the air conditioning.
The good news is, despite a lot of virus being detected in wastewater, we’re not seeing a huge increase in emergency department visits and hospitalizations. That speaks to the fact that a lot of people have gotten COVID previously, sometimes multiple times, and a lot of people have gotten vaccines and/or boosters, so there’s just a lot of built-up immunity. People are getting COVID, but they’re not getting as sick.
There’s a new variant, right?
There’s always new variants popping up. We don’t have as much data, just because, again, we monitor variants using data from PCR tests and there’s very, very few cases sequenced. But it looks like the KP.3 variant is the most common variant in North Carolina right now.
I asked in part because, I’m not trying to make this a personal medical consultation, but I have COVID right now, and I had it in April as well, which just seems sort of, how is this possible? I’m boosted and everything. So I figured, maybe it’s because of the new variant?
Or it’s just that immunity that will keep you from getting the COVID-19 infection does not last that long. Built up immunity helps you to keep from getting quite as sick, but unfortunately it’s not super uncommon to get them in relative close proximity,
What are your recommendations on how folks should be conducting themselves right now? Do you have masking guidance, social distancing guidance? Are you referring to the CDC on that, or is the county able to make its own recommendations?
We have similar recommendations to what the CDC recommends. Stay up to date on your immunizations. The updated COVID vaccine should be available within the next four to six weeks, so get that, get that annual COVID shot as soon as possible.
Practice good hygiene. Frequently wash your hands when possible. Take advantage of cleaner air, so opening windows or holding get-togethers outside when possible. If you do feel sick, get tested. But even if you don’t test, if you feel sick, stay at home until your symptoms are getting better and you are fever-free.
We do recommend, as the CDC does, for an additional five days, wear a well-fitting mask and socially distance.
Would you advise that people be masking in their day-to-day life right now, especially amid the surge?
That’s kind of dependent on someone’s personal comfort and to what degree they don’t want to get sick. We’re seeing there’s lots of virus that causes COVID circulating, but it’s going to be RSV season pretty soon, and then flu season in the fall and winter. It’s dependent on the individual. But personally, I would say it’s never a bad idea if you’re going to be out in public in a crowded area to wear a mask.
Where can folks acquire tests?
We have take-home tests that are still available at the county health department that you can pick up for free.
Are y’all working with fewer resources these days than you were earlier on in the pandemic? Is that making it harder to manage things on the local level?
I wouldn’t say it’s making it harder, but yeah, certainly once the national COVID emergency ended, a lot of the funding dried up. But we’re still in a pretty good position. The majority of the population has had COVID at least once and is vaccinated. Most people are well enough protected that they’re not going to get really sick.. And we have therapeutics now too. If someone you know is sick and they’re older, or their immune system isn’t working 100 percent, there are treatments like Paxlovid that they can talk to their primary care physician about. We have more tools than we previously did, and a lot of built up immunity in the community.
This interview was edited for length and clarity.
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