Where can I find public case data about mpox?
Case data can be found at a state and national level on the CDC’s website.
There is also a world map on the CDC site, and on the WHO dashboard.
State and local health departments may provide more detailed information on their own webpages; for example King County, Washington presents additional demographic and geographic information about their cases on their local website.
How does vaccination affect wastewater shedding?
As of September, 2022, JYNNEOS is the only FDA-approved vaccine for the prevention of mpox. Because it is a non-replicating vaccine, it is not shed by vaccinated individuals, and should not affect estimates of MPXV in wastewater.
Does it matter whether we test wastewater solids vs. liquids?
As pathogens have different physical characteristics, it is possible that pathogens differentially partition more to the solids or liquids portion in wastewater. At Biobot, we performed internal analyses that suggested that we were able to achieve the best sensitivity with a method that uses wastewater liquids (influent).
As a CDC partner, are there any resources available to help interpret the results of their CDC-provided MPOX reports?
It is not yet possible to translate the concentration of MPXV DNA in wastewater to a predicted number of cases in the sewershed. However, based on findings within the wastewater epidemiology community, consistent detections of MPXV DNA in wastewater likely translates to multiple cases of mpox. If no cases have been reported in your community, this could indicate undetected infections in the community. If you have any further questions about these data and how to interpret them, please email nwss@cdc.gov.