Spatio-temporal assessment of illicit drug use at large scale: evidence from 7 years of international wastewater monitoring

Iria González-Mariño; Jose Antonio Baz-Lomba; Nikiforos A. Alygizakis; Maria Jesús Andrés-Costa; Richard Bade; Anne Bannwarth; Leon P. Barron; Frederic Been; Lisa Benaglia; Jean Daniel Berset; Lubertus Bijlsma; Igor Bodík; Asher Brenner; Andreas L. Brock; Daniel A. Burgard; Erika Castrignanò; Alberto Celma; Christophoros E. Christophoridis; Adrian Covaci; Oliver Delémont; Pim Devoogt; Damien A. Devault; Mário J. Dias; Erik Emke; Pierre Esseiva; Despo Fatta-Kassinos; Ganna Fedorova; Konstantinos Fytianos; Cobus Gerber; Roman Grabic; Emma Gracia-Lor; Stefan Grüner; Teemu Gunnar; Evroula Hapeshi; Ester Heath; Björn Helm; Félix Hernández; Aino Kankaanpaa; Sara Karolak; Barbara Kasprzyk-Hordern; Ivona Krizman-Matasic; Foon Yin Lai; Wojciech Lechowicz; Alvaro Lopes; Miren López de Alda; Ester López-García; Arndís S.C. Löve; Nicola Mastroianni; Gillian L. McEneff; Kelly Munro

doi:10.1111/add.14767

Spatio-temporal assessment of illicit drug use at large scale: evidence from 7 years of international wastewater monitoring

Iria González-Mariño^*, Jose Antonio Baz-Lomba, Nikiforos A. Alygizakis, Maria Jesús Andrés-Costa, Richard Bade, Anne Bannwarth, Leon P. Barron, Frederic Been, Lisa Benaglia, Jean Daniel Berset, Lubertus Bijlsma, Igor Bodík, Asher Brenner, Andreas L. Brock, Daniel A. Burgard, Erika Castrignanò, Alberto Celma, Christophoros E. Christophoridis, Adrian Covaci, Oliver DelémontPim Devoogt, Damien A. Devault, Mário J. Dias, Erik Emke, Pierre Esseiva, Despo Fatta-Kassinos, Ganna Fedorova, Konstantinos Fytianos, Cobus Gerber, Roman Grabic, Emma Gracia-Lor, Stefan Grüner, Teemu Gunnar, Evroula Hapeshi, Ester Heath, Björn Helm, Félix Hernández, Aino Kankaanpaa, Sara Karolak, Barbara Kasprzyk-Hordern, Ivona Krizman-Matasic, Foon Yin Lai, Wojciech Lechowicz, Alvaro Lopes, Miren López de Alda, Ester López-García, Arndís S.C. Löve, Nicola Mastroianni, Gillian L. McEneff, Kelly Munro

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

166 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Background and aims: Wastewater-based epidemiology is an additional indicator of drug use that is gaining reliability to complement the current established panel of indicators. The aims of this study were to: (i) assess spatial and temporal trends of population-normalized mass loads of benzoylecgonine, amphetamine, methamphetamine and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) in raw wastewater over 7 years (2011–17); (ii) address overall drug use by estimating the average number of combined doses consumed per day in each city; and (iii) compare these with existing prevalence and seizure data. Design: Analysis of daily raw wastewater composite samples collected over 1 week per year from 2011 to 2017. Setting and Participants: Catchment areas of 143 wastewater treatment plants in 120 cities in 37 countries. Measurements: Parent substances (amphetamine, methamphetamine and MDMA) and the metabolites of cocaine (benzoylecgonine) and of Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol (11-nor-9-carboxy-Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol) were measured in wastewater using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Daily mass loads (mg/day) were normalized to catchment population (mg/1000 people/day) and converted to the number of combined doses consumed per day. Spatial differences were assessed world-wide, and temporal trends were discerned at European level by comparing 2011–13 drug loads versus 2014–17 loads. Findings: Benzoylecgonine was the stimulant metabolite detected at higher loads in southern and western Europe, and amphetamine, MDMA and methamphetamine in East and North–Central Europe. In other continents, methamphetamine showed the highest levels in the United States and Australia and benzoylecgonine in South America. During the reporting period, benzoylecgonine loads increased in general across Europe, amphetamine and methamphetamine levels fluctuated and MDMA underwent an intermittent upsurge. Conclusions: The analysis of wastewater to quantify drug loads provides near real-time drug use estimates that globally correspond to prevalence and seizure data.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	109-120
Number of pages	12
Journal	Addiction
Volume	115
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1111/add.14767
Publication status	Published - 1 Jan 2020

Keywords

Amphetamine
cocaine
ecstasy/MDMA
illicit drugs
methamphetamine
wastewater-based epidemiology

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1111/add.14767

Cite this

González-Mariño, I., Baz-Lomba, J. A., Alygizakis, N. A., Andrés-Costa, M. J., Bade, R., Bannwarth, A., Barron, L. P., Been, F., Benaglia, L., Berset, J. D., Bijlsma, L., Bodík, I., Brenner, A., Brock, A. L., Burgard, D. A., Castrignanò, E., Celma, A., Christophoridis, C. E., Covaci, A., ... Munro, K. (2020). Spatio-temporal assessment of illicit drug use at large scale: evidence from 7 years of international wastewater monitoring. Addiction, 115(1), 109-120. https://doi.org/10.1111/add.14767

@article{2fa7948690674e1db0e90686673371b1,

title = "Spatio-temporal assessment of illicit drug use at large scale: evidence from 7 years of international wastewater monitoring",

abstract = "Background and aims: Wastewater-based epidemiology is an additional indicator of drug use that is gaining reliability to complement the current established panel of indicators. The aims of this study were to: (i) assess spatial and temporal trends of population-normalized mass loads of benzoylecgonine, amphetamine, methamphetamine and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) in raw wastewater over 7 years (2011–17); (ii) address overall drug use by estimating the average number of combined doses consumed per day in each city; and (iii) compare these with existing prevalence and seizure data. Design: Analysis of daily raw wastewater composite samples collected over 1 week per year from 2011 to 2017. Setting and Participants: Catchment areas of 143 wastewater treatment plants in 120 cities in 37 countries. Measurements: Parent substances (amphetamine, methamphetamine and MDMA) and the metabolites of cocaine (benzoylecgonine) and of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (11-nor-9-carboxy-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol) were measured in wastewater using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Daily mass loads (mg/day) were normalized to catchment population (mg/1000 people/day) and converted to the number of combined doses consumed per day. Spatial differences were assessed world-wide, and temporal trends were discerned at European level by comparing 2011–13 drug loads versus 2014–17 loads. Findings: Benzoylecgonine was the stimulant metabolite detected at higher loads in southern and western Europe, and amphetamine, MDMA and methamphetamine in East and North–Central Europe. In other continents, methamphetamine showed the highest levels in the United States and Australia and benzoylecgonine in South America. During the reporting period, benzoylecgonine loads increased in general across Europe, amphetamine and methamphetamine levels fluctuated and MDMA underwent an intermittent upsurge. Conclusions: The analysis of wastewater to quantify drug loads provides near real-time drug use estimates that globally correspond to prevalence and seizure data.",

keywords = "Amphetamine, cocaine, ecstasy/MDMA, illicit drugs, methamphetamine, wastewater-based epidemiology",

author = "Iria Gonz{\'a}lez-Mari{\~n}o and Baz-Lomba, {Jose Antonio} and Alygizakis, {Nikiforos A.} and Andr{\'e}s-Costa, {Maria Jes{\'u}s} and Richard Bade and Anne Bannwarth and Barron, {Leon P.} and Frederic Been and Lisa Benaglia and Berset, {Jean Daniel} and Lubertus Bijlsma and Igor Bod{\'i}k and Asher Brenner and Brock, {Andreas L.} and Burgard, {Daniel A.} and Erika Castrignan{\`o} and Alberto Celma and Christophoridis, {Christophoros E.} and Adrian Covaci and Oliver Del{\'e}mont and Pim Devoogt and Devault, {Damien A.} and Dias, {M{\'a}rio J.} and Erik Emke and Pierre Esseiva and Despo Fatta-Kassinos and Ganna Fedorova and Konstantinos Fytianos and Cobus Gerber and Roman Grabic and Emma Gracia-Lor and Stefan Gr{\"u}ner and Teemu Gunnar and Evroula Hapeshi and Ester Heath and Bj{\"o}rn Helm and F{\'e}lix Hern{\'a}ndez and Aino Kankaanpaa and Sara Karolak and Barbara Kasprzyk-Hordern and Ivona Krizman-Matasic and Lai, {Foon Yin} and Wojciech Lechowicz and Alvaro Lopes and {de Alda}, {Miren L{\'o}pez} and Ester L{\'o}pez-Garc{\'i}a and L{\"o}ve, {Arnd{\'i}s S.C.} and Nicola Mastroianni and McEneff, {Gillian L.} and Kelly Munro",

note = "Funding Information: Australia: Thyne Reid foundation; Canada: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC); Iceland: The Icelandic Research Fund (Grant number 163049–051); Slovenia: Slovene Research Agency (funding Project L1–9191); Spain: MINECO/AEI projects (CTM2014–56628‐C3–2‐R, CTQ2015–65603‐P, CTM2016–81935‐REDT, CTM2017–84763‐C3–2‐R), Galician Council of Culture, Education and Universities (ED481D 2017/003); UK: Environmental Sustainability Knowledge Transfer Network, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and Thermo Fisher Scientific (CASE industrial scholarship for K. Munro, Ref.: EP/J502029/1). European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA); EU International Training Network SEWPROF (Marie Curie‐FP7‐PEOPLE, grant number 317205); COST Action ES1307 supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology); WATCH (Wastewater Analysis of Traces of illicit drug‐related Chemicals for law enforcement and public Health DG migration and Home affairs ‐ HOME/2015/ISFP/PR/DRUG/0062). Austria: Klemens Geiger and Michael Schlapp; Belgium: Jonathan Phariseau, Bart Coene, Luc Van Os, Peter Nys, Dieter Lemaire, Jean‐Fran{\c c}ois Mougel, Patrick Vantroyen and Karel Claes; Croatia: Marin Ganjto; Czech Republic: Jiri Stara and Robert Hrich Brn{\v e}nsk{\'e}; France: V{\'e}ronique Bremont; Italy: Roberto Mazzini and Francesca Pizza (Milan), Francesco Avolio (Bologna), Fabrizio Moratto and Sergio Ghezzi (Gorizia), Rosanna Brienza and Simona Panariello (Potenza), Pier Paolo Abis and Antonia Attanasio (Bari), Antonella Cicala (Palermo); Norway: Pia Ryrfors; Portugal: Jo{\~a}o Goul{\~a}o, Jos{\'e} Martins, Pedro Alvaro and F{\'a}tima Paix{\~a}o; Slovakia: Silvia Antalov{\'a} and Jozef Tichy; Spain: Bego{\~n}a Mart{\'i}nez L{\'o}pez, Cristian Mesa, Santiago Querol Rodriguez, Fernando Llavador, Enrique Albors and Gloria Fayos; the Netherlands: Alex Veltman, Peter Theijssen, Peter van Dijk, Stefan Wijers, Mark Stevens, Ferry de Wilde. Australia: Maulik Ghetia; Cyprus: Popi Karaolia; Greece: Nikoilaos Raikos; Spain: Ana Maria Botero‐Coy, Clara Boix, Alberto Celma, Jorge Pitarch, In{\'e}s Racamonde and Eddie Fonseca; Italy: Emma Gracia‐Lor, Nikolaos I. Rousis and Noelia Salgueiro‐Gonzalez. Eawag: Harald von Waldow; EMCDDA: Renate Hochwieser, Liesbeth Vandam, Jo{\~a}o Matias and Federica Mathis. This study was supported by the following countries, institutions and projects Sampling support and provision of catchment information Analytical support Data repository and data screening Funding Information: This study was supported by the following countries, institutions and projects Australia: Thyne Reid foundation; Canada: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC); Iceland: The Icelandic Research Fund (Grant number 163049–051); Slovenia: Slovene Research Agency (funding Project L1–9191); Spain: MINECO/AEI projects (CTM2014–56628-C3–2-R, CTQ2015–65603-P, CTM2016–81935-REDT, CTM2017–84763-C3–2-R), Galician Council of Culture, Education and Universities (ED481D 2017/003); UK: Environmental Sustainability Knowledge Transfer Network, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and Thermo Fisher Scientific (CASE industrial scholarship for K. Munro, Ref.: EP/J502029/1). European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA); EU International Training Network SEWPROF (Marie Curie-FP7-PEOPLE, grant number 317205); COST Action ES1307 supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology); WATCH (Wastewater Analysis of Traces of illicit drug-related Chemicals for law enforcement and public Health DG migration and Home affairs - HOME/2015/ISFP/PR/DRUG/0062). Sampling support and provision of catchment information Austria: Klemens Geiger and Michael Schlapp; Belgium: Jonathan Phariseau, Bart Coene, Luc Van Os, Peter Nys, Dieter Lemaire, Jean-Fran{\c c}ois Mougel, Patrick Vantroyen and Karel Claes; Croatia: Marin Ganjto; Czech Republic: Jiri Stara and Robert Hrich Brn{\v e}nsk{\'e}; France: V{\'e}ronique Bremont; Italy: Roberto Mazzini and Francesca Pizza (Milan), Francesco Avolio (Bologna), Fabrizio Moratto and Sergio Ghezzi (Gorizia), Rosanna Brienza and Simona Panariello (Potenza), Pier Paolo Abis and Antonia Attanasio (Bari), Antonella Cicala (Palermo); Norway: Pia Ryrfors; Portugal: Jo{\~a}o Goul{\~a}o, Jos{\'e} Martins, Pedro Alvaro and F{\'a}tima Paix{\~a}o; Slovakia: Silvia Antalov{\'a} and Jozef Tichy; Spain: Bego{\~n}a Mart{\'i}nez L{\'o}pez, Cristian Mesa, Santiago Querol Rodriguez, Fernando Llavador, Enrique Albors and Gloria Fayos; the Netherlands: Alex Veltman, Peter Theijssen, Peter van Dijk, Stefan Wijers, Mark Stevens, Ferry de Wilde. Analytical support Australia: Maulik Ghetia; Cyprus: Popi Karaolia; Greece: Nikoilaos Raikos; Spain: Ana Maria Botero-Coy, Clara Boix, Alberto Celma, Jorge Pitarch, In{\'e}s Racamonde and Eddie Fonseca; Italy: Emma Gracia-Lor, Nikolaos I. Rousis and Noelia Salgueiro-Gonzalez. Data repository and data screening Eawag: Harald von Waldow; EMCDDA: Renate Hochwieser, Liesbeth Vandam, Jo{\~a}o Matias and Federica Mathis. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2019 The Authors. Addiction published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society for the Study of Addiction",

year = "2020",

month = jan,

day = "1",

doi = "10.1111/add.14767",

language = "English",

volume = "115",

pages = "109--120",

journal = "Addiction",

issn = "0965-2140",

publisher = "Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd",

number = "1",

}

González-Mariño, I, Baz-Lomba, JA, Alygizakis, NA, Andrés-Costa, MJ, Bade, R, Bannwarth, A, Barron, LP, Been, F, Benaglia, L, Berset, JD, Bijlsma, L, Bodík, I, Brenner, A, Brock, AL, Burgard, DA, Castrignanò, E, Celma, A, Christophoridis, CE, Covaci, A, Delémont, O, Devoogt, P, Devault, DA, Dias, MJ, Emke, E, Esseiva, P, Fatta-Kassinos, D, Fedorova, G, Fytianos, K, Gerber, C, Grabic, R, Gracia-Lor, E, Grüner, S, Gunnar, T, Hapeshi, E, Heath, E, Helm, B, Hernández, F, Kankaanpaa, A, Karolak, S, Kasprzyk-Hordern, B, Krizman-Matasic, I, Lai, FY, Lechowicz, W, Lopes, A, de Alda, ML, López-García, E, Löve, ASC, Mastroianni, N, McEneff, GL & Munro, K 2020, 'Spatio-temporal assessment of illicit drug use at large scale: evidence from 7 years of international wastewater monitoring', Addiction, vol. 115, no. 1, pp. 109-120. https://doi.org/10.1111/add.14767

TY - JOUR

T1 - Spatio-temporal assessment of illicit drug use at large scale

T2 - evidence from 7 years of international wastewater monitoring

AU - González-Mariño, Iria

AU - Baz-Lomba, Jose Antonio

AU - Alygizakis, Nikiforos A.

AU - Andrés-Costa, Maria Jesús

AU - Bade, Richard

AU - Bannwarth, Anne

AU - Barron, Leon P.

AU - Been, Frederic

AU - Benaglia, Lisa

AU - Berset, Jean Daniel

AU - Bijlsma, Lubertus

AU - Bodík, Igor

AU - Brenner, Asher

AU - Brock, Andreas L.

AU - Burgard, Daniel A.

AU - Castrignanò, Erika

AU - Celma, Alberto

AU - Christophoridis, Christophoros E.

AU - Covaci, Adrian

AU - Delémont, Oliver

AU - Devoogt, Pim

AU - Devault, Damien A.

AU - Dias, Mário J.

AU - Emke, Erik

AU - Esseiva, Pierre

AU - Fatta-Kassinos, Despo

AU - Fedorova, Ganna

AU - Fytianos, Konstantinos

AU - Gerber, Cobus

AU - Grabic, Roman

AU - Gracia-Lor, Emma

AU - Grüner, Stefan

AU - Gunnar, Teemu

AU - Hapeshi, Evroula

AU - Heath, Ester

AU - Helm, Björn

AU - Hernández, Félix

AU - Kankaanpaa, Aino

AU - Karolak, Sara

AU - Kasprzyk-Hordern, Barbara

AU - Krizman-Matasic, Ivona

AU - Lai, Foon Yin

AU - Lechowicz, Wojciech

AU - Lopes, Alvaro

AU - de Alda, Miren López

AU - López-García, Ester

AU - Löve, Arndís S.C.

AU - Mastroianni, Nicola

AU - McEneff, Gillian L.

AU - Munro, Kelly

N1 - Funding Information: Australia: Thyne Reid foundation; Canada: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC); Iceland: The Icelandic Research Fund (Grant number 163049–051); Slovenia: Slovene Research Agency (funding Project L1–9191); Spain: MINECO/AEI projects (CTM2014–56628‐C3–2‐R, CTQ2015–65603‐P, CTM2016–81935‐REDT, CTM2017–84763‐C3–2‐R), Galician Council of Culture, Education and Universities (ED481D 2017/003); UK: Environmental Sustainability Knowledge Transfer Network, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and Thermo Fisher Scientific (CASE industrial scholarship for K. Munro, Ref.: EP/J502029/1). European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA); EU International Training Network SEWPROF (Marie Curie‐FP7‐PEOPLE, grant number 317205); COST Action ES1307 supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology); WATCH (Wastewater Analysis of Traces of illicit drug‐related Chemicals for law enforcement and public Health DG migration and Home affairs ‐ HOME/2015/ISFP/PR/DRUG/0062). Austria: Klemens Geiger and Michael Schlapp; Belgium: Jonathan Phariseau, Bart Coene, Luc Van Os, Peter Nys, Dieter Lemaire, Jean‐François Mougel, Patrick Vantroyen and Karel Claes; Croatia: Marin Ganjto; Czech Republic: Jiri Stara and Robert Hrich Brněnské; France: Véronique Bremont; Italy: Roberto Mazzini and Francesca Pizza (Milan), Francesco Avolio (Bologna), Fabrizio Moratto and Sergio Ghezzi (Gorizia), Rosanna Brienza and Simona Panariello (Potenza), Pier Paolo Abis and Antonia Attanasio (Bari), Antonella Cicala (Palermo); Norway: Pia Ryrfors; Portugal: João Goulão, José Martins, Pedro Alvaro and Fátima Paixão; Slovakia: Silvia Antalová and Jozef Tichy; Spain: Begoña Martínez López, Cristian Mesa, Santiago Querol Rodriguez, Fernando Llavador, Enrique Albors and Gloria Fayos; the Netherlands: Alex Veltman, Peter Theijssen, Peter van Dijk, Stefan Wijers, Mark Stevens, Ferry de Wilde. Australia: Maulik Ghetia; Cyprus: Popi Karaolia; Greece: Nikoilaos Raikos; Spain: Ana Maria Botero‐Coy, Clara Boix, Alberto Celma, Jorge Pitarch, Inés Racamonde and Eddie Fonseca; Italy: Emma Gracia‐Lor, Nikolaos I. Rousis and Noelia Salgueiro‐Gonzalez. Eawag: Harald von Waldow; EMCDDA: Renate Hochwieser, Liesbeth Vandam, João Matias and Federica Mathis. This study was supported by the following countries, institutions and projects Sampling support and provision of catchment information Analytical support Data repository and data screening Funding Information: This study was supported by the following countries, institutions and projects Australia: Thyne Reid foundation; Canada: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC); Iceland: The Icelandic Research Fund (Grant number 163049–051); Slovenia: Slovene Research Agency (funding Project L1–9191); Spain: MINECO/AEI projects (CTM2014–56628-C3–2-R, CTQ2015–65603-P, CTM2016–81935-REDT, CTM2017–84763-C3–2-R), Galician Council of Culture, Education and Universities (ED481D 2017/003); UK: Environmental Sustainability Knowledge Transfer Network, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and Thermo Fisher Scientific (CASE industrial scholarship for K. Munro, Ref.: EP/J502029/1). European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA); EU International Training Network SEWPROF (Marie Curie-FP7-PEOPLE, grant number 317205); COST Action ES1307 supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology); WATCH (Wastewater Analysis of Traces of illicit drug-related Chemicals for law enforcement and public Health DG migration and Home affairs - HOME/2015/ISFP/PR/DRUG/0062). Sampling support and provision of catchment information Austria: Klemens Geiger and Michael Schlapp; Belgium: Jonathan Phariseau, Bart Coene, Luc Van Os, Peter Nys, Dieter Lemaire, Jean-François Mougel, Patrick Vantroyen and Karel Claes; Croatia: Marin Ganjto; Czech Republic: Jiri Stara and Robert Hrich Brněnské; France: Véronique Bremont; Italy: Roberto Mazzini and Francesca Pizza (Milan), Francesco Avolio (Bologna), Fabrizio Moratto and Sergio Ghezzi (Gorizia), Rosanna Brienza and Simona Panariello (Potenza), Pier Paolo Abis and Antonia Attanasio (Bari), Antonella Cicala (Palermo); Norway: Pia Ryrfors; Portugal: João Goulão, José Martins, Pedro Alvaro and Fátima Paixão; Slovakia: Silvia Antalová and Jozef Tichy; Spain: Begoña Martínez López, Cristian Mesa, Santiago Querol Rodriguez, Fernando Llavador, Enrique Albors and Gloria Fayos; the Netherlands: Alex Veltman, Peter Theijssen, Peter van Dijk, Stefan Wijers, Mark Stevens, Ferry de Wilde. Analytical support Australia: Maulik Ghetia; Cyprus: Popi Karaolia; Greece: Nikoilaos Raikos; Spain: Ana Maria Botero-Coy, Clara Boix, Alberto Celma, Jorge Pitarch, Inés Racamonde and Eddie Fonseca; Italy: Emma Gracia-Lor, Nikolaos I. Rousis and Noelia Salgueiro-Gonzalez. Data repository and data screening Eawag: Harald von Waldow; EMCDDA: Renate Hochwieser, Liesbeth Vandam, João Matias and Federica Mathis. Publisher Copyright: © 2019 The Authors. Addiction published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society for the Study of Addiction

PY - 2020/1/1

Y1 - 2020/1/1

N2 - Background and aims: Wastewater-based epidemiology is an additional indicator of drug use that is gaining reliability to complement the current established panel of indicators. The aims of this study were to: (i) assess spatial and temporal trends of population-normalized mass loads of benzoylecgonine, amphetamine, methamphetamine and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) in raw wastewater over 7 years (2011–17); (ii) address overall drug use by estimating the average number of combined doses consumed per day in each city; and (iii) compare these with existing prevalence and seizure data. Design: Analysis of daily raw wastewater composite samples collected over 1 week per year from 2011 to 2017. Setting and Participants: Catchment areas of 143 wastewater treatment plants in 120 cities in 37 countries. Measurements: Parent substances (amphetamine, methamphetamine and MDMA) and the metabolites of cocaine (benzoylecgonine) and of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (11-nor-9-carboxy-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol) were measured in wastewater using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Daily mass loads (mg/day) were normalized to catchment population (mg/1000 people/day) and converted to the number of combined doses consumed per day. Spatial differences were assessed world-wide, and temporal trends were discerned at European level by comparing 2011–13 drug loads versus 2014–17 loads. Findings: Benzoylecgonine was the stimulant metabolite detected at higher loads in southern and western Europe, and amphetamine, MDMA and methamphetamine in East and North–Central Europe. In other continents, methamphetamine showed the highest levels in the United States and Australia and benzoylecgonine in South America. During the reporting period, benzoylecgonine loads increased in general across Europe, amphetamine and methamphetamine levels fluctuated and MDMA underwent an intermittent upsurge. Conclusions: The analysis of wastewater to quantify drug loads provides near real-time drug use estimates that globally correspond to prevalence and seizure data.

AB - Background and aims: Wastewater-based epidemiology is an additional indicator of drug use that is gaining reliability to complement the current established panel of indicators. The aims of this study were to: (i) assess spatial and temporal trends of population-normalized mass loads of benzoylecgonine, amphetamine, methamphetamine and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) in raw wastewater over 7 years (2011–17); (ii) address overall drug use by estimating the average number of combined doses consumed per day in each city; and (iii) compare these with existing prevalence and seizure data. Design: Analysis of daily raw wastewater composite samples collected over 1 week per year from 2011 to 2017. Setting and Participants: Catchment areas of 143 wastewater treatment plants in 120 cities in 37 countries. Measurements: Parent substances (amphetamine, methamphetamine and MDMA) and the metabolites of cocaine (benzoylecgonine) and of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (11-nor-9-carboxy-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol) were measured in wastewater using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Daily mass loads (mg/day) were normalized to catchment population (mg/1000 people/day) and converted to the number of combined doses consumed per day. Spatial differences were assessed world-wide, and temporal trends were discerned at European level by comparing 2011–13 drug loads versus 2014–17 loads. Findings: Benzoylecgonine was the stimulant metabolite detected at higher loads in southern and western Europe, and amphetamine, MDMA and methamphetamine in East and North–Central Europe. In other continents, methamphetamine showed the highest levels in the United States and Australia and benzoylecgonine in South America. During the reporting period, benzoylecgonine loads increased in general across Europe, amphetamine and methamphetamine levels fluctuated and MDMA underwent an intermittent upsurge. Conclusions: The analysis of wastewater to quantify drug loads provides near real-time drug use estimates that globally correspond to prevalence and seizure data.

KW - Amphetamine

KW - cocaine

KW - ecstasy/MDMA

KW - illicit drugs

KW - methamphetamine

KW - wastewater-based epidemiology

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85074608360&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1111/add.14767

DO - 10.1111/add.14767

M3 - Article

C2 - 31642141

AN - SCOPUS:85074608360

SN - 0965-2140

VL - 115

SP - 109

EP - 120

JO - Addiction

JF - Addiction

IS - 1

ER -

Spatio-temporal assessment of illicit drug use at large scale: evidence from 7 years of international wastewater monitoring

Abstract

Keywords

UN SDGs

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this