Issues for microbial regulation: Aeromonas as a model.
The decision by public health agencies to regulate specific microorganisms that may be found in drinking water can only be made if specific criteria find that a microorganism poses a health risk. These criteria should include: (1) there is a clinical history of an organism causing disease from the ingestion of drinking water; (2) there is epidemiological evidence that drinking water rather than food or other vectors is a major source of disease; (3) there is sufficient evidence that the target organism, if found in water, possesses virulence factors capable of causing disease in humans; (4) there is sufficient evidence that the target organism is not readily removed or inactivated by multi-barrier conventional water treatment process (e.g., coagulation-filtration-disinfection); (5) there is sufficient evidence that the target organism, if surviving conventional treatment, will be viable, virulent, and present in sufficient numbers to cause disease; (6) there are robust analytical methods for the target organism which have acceptable sensitivity, specificity, and reproducibility to measure accurately the presence of the target organism in treated water; and (7) the performance criteria of analytical method(s) for the target organism have been certified by the appropriate public health agency, and there is intra-laboratory field-test performance data to base this certification.
Edberg
Stephen C
SC
Department of Laboratory Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8035, USA. Stephen.edberg@yale.edu
Browne
Frederick A
FA
Allen
Martin J
MJ
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000333:Aeromonas / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005618:Fresh Water / Q000382:microbiology*; D005759:Gastroenteritis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D016905:Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008875:Middle Aged; D013045:Species Specificity; D014876:Water Pollution / Q000032:analysis; D014881:Water Supply / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000592:standards*