Wastewater-based and case-based surveillance data for monitoring COVID-19 in Germany, 2022–2024

This article presents a harmonized dataset combining environmental and epidemiological indicators to monitor COVID-19 activity across Germany over 131 consecutive weeks (July 2022–December 2024). The dataset integrates population-weighted SARS-CoV-2 RNA concentrations from wastewater with four independent indicators derived from clinical and participatory surveillance systems: incidence estimates from the German notification system, self-reported incidence estimates from the GrippeWeb participatory system, incidence estimates derived from the combination of GrippeWeb acute respiratory infection data with virological SARS-CoV-2 positivity rates, and incidence estimates based on primary care COVID-19 diagnoses adjusted for healthcare-seeking behavior. All case-based indicators are provided as weekly incidence estimates per 100,000 inhabitants or active participants, where applicable, and are aligned to calendar weeks starting on Monday. Wastewater values represent viral loads measured in gene copies per litre of wastewater and summarize samples collected from the previous Thursday through the current Wednesday. The dataset allows for the assessment of relationships between wastewater signals and case-based indicators of disease activity. This article focuses on dataset construction, harmonization, and structural characteristics, including temporal alignment challenges, and outlines potential analytical use cases.