Abstract
In 2007, a waterborne outbreak of Cryptosporidium hominis infection occurred in western Ireland, resulting in 242 laboratory-confirmed cases and an uncertain number of unconfirmed cases. A boil water notice was in place for 158 days that affected 120,432 persons residing in the area, businesses, visitors, and commuters. This outbreak represented the largest outbreak of cryptosporidiosis in Ireland. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cost of this outbreak. We adopted a societal perspective in estimating costs associated with the outbreak. Economic cost estimated was based on totaling direct and indirect costs incurred by public and private agencies. The cost of the outbreak was estimated based on 2007 figures. We estimate that the cost of the outbreak was >€19 million (≈€120,000/day of the outbreak). The US dollar equivalent based on today’s exchange rates would be $22.44 million (≈$142,000/day of the outbreak). This study highlights the economic need for a safe drinking water supply.
Highlights
In 2007, a waterborne outbreak of Cryptosporidium hominis infection occurred in western Ireland, resulting in 242 laboratory-confirmed cases and an uncertain number of unconfirmed cases
The challenge associated with managing waterborne infection with Cryptosporidium spp. is that infection is not inactivated by chlorination of water, which is the primary method of water treatment in many areas [6]
We estimated that the overall cost of the waterborne outbreak of cryptosporidiosis in Galway in 2007 was €19 million or €120,000/day of the outbreak (Table 2)
Summary
In 2007, a waterborne outbreak of Cryptosporidium hominis infection occurred in western Ireland, resulting in 242 laboratory-confirmed cases and an uncertain number of unconfirmed cases. A boil water notice was in place for 158 days that affected 120,432 persons residing in the area, businesses, visitors, and commuters. This outbreak represented the largest outbreak of cryptosporidiosis in Ireland. Many studies have estimated the economic costs of microbial contamination of drinking water supplies [7,10,11,12,13]. The outbreak ended in August 2007 after major investments by local authorities in water treatment infrastructure and major disruption to residents and local businesses Water quality incidents, such as the outbreak of cryptosporidiosis in Galway in 2007, can have major economic effects on the entire community (residential and commercial) [7,15].
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