Epidemiology News and Research

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Study elucidates mechanisms behind protective farm effect on childhood asthma

Asthma impacts millions of children already at a young age. Children growing up on a farm have a lower risk of developing asthma than children not living on a farm.

2 Nov 2020

Genomic sequence of the White House "superspreader" event

Now, a new study revealed the genetic signature of the SARS-CoV-2 that spread in the White House and most likely infected President Trump. The team applied genomic epidemiology to shed light on the origins of the outbreak

2 Nov 2020

Hospital floors create route of transfer of potentially dangerous organisms to patients

The floors of hospital rooms are quickly and frequently contaminated with antibiotic-resistant bacteria within hours of patient admission, creating a route of transfer of potentially dangerous organisms to patients, according to a study published today as part of the proceedings from Decennial 2020: The Sixth International Conference on Healthcare-Associated Infections.

30 Oct 2020

Experts call for transformative change to reduce future pandemics

Future pandemics will emerge more often, spread more rapidly, do more damage to the world economy and kill more people than COVID-19 unless there is a transformative change in the global approach to dealing with infectious diseases, warns a major new report on biodiversity and pandemics by 22 leading experts from around the world.

30 Oct 2020

Children with multiple islet autoantibodies are more likely to progress to type 1 diabetes

Children with multiple islet autoantibodies - biological markers of autoimmunity -- are more likely to progress to symptomatic type 1 diabetes (T1D) than those who remain positive for a single autoantibody.

30 Oct 2020

Model includes spatial heterogeneity to analyze airborne disease spread

Researchers from the University of Copenhagen have included parameters that consider a spatially heterogeneous population for transmission in a new model for airborne disease transmission. This allows for estimating superspreaders and appropriate mitigation strategies.

29 Oct 2020

People with multiple depressive symptoms have higher stroke risk

People with multiple depressive symptoms have an increased risk for stroke, according to findings recently published in Neurology: Clinical Practice.

29 Oct 2020

New therapeutic approach brings hope for treating psoriasis

Disruptive innovations in psoriasis are leading the way at EADV's 29th Congress, EADV Virtual. New data published today shows the first clinical evidence of modulating systemic inflammation by oral delivery of a non-living single strain commensal microbe.

29 Oct 2020

Researchers analyze racial disparities in access to bariatric surgery

The use of bariatric surgery to treat severe obesity in adolescents, and the racial disparities in access to that treatment, were analyzed in a retrospective study published in Annals of Surgery by researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).

29 Oct 2020

Researchers develop infectious disease model for forecasting elections

Forecasting elections is a high-stakes problem. Politicians and voters alike are often desperate to know the outcome of a close race, but providing them with incomplete or inaccurate predictions can be misleading.

29 Oct 2020

Geography, household income impact liver cancer diagnoses and mortality

An analysis of information from a large U.S. cancer database indicates that patients with liver cancer from rural regions and lower income households often have more advanced cancer at the time of diagnosis and face a higher risk of death compared with other patients.

28 Oct 2020

Study reveals sex-based differences in clearance of asymptomatic malaria infections

Females are able to clear asymptomatic malaria infections at a faster rate than their male counterparts, says a study published today in eLife.

27 Oct 2020

Researchers study the dynamics of airborne transmission

The continued increase in COVID-19 infection around the world has led scientists from many different fields, including biomedicine, epidemiology, virology, fluid dynamics, aerosol physics, and public policy, to study the dynamics of airborne transmission.

27 Oct 2020

Delaying urgent health issues can be more harmful than the potential risk of COVID-19

More than half a year into the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, healthcare providers have adapted by offering virtual visits and observing strict safety measures in clinics.

27 Oct 2020

COVID-19 vaccine tracker provides real-time updates on effective vaccine

McGill University professor Nicole Basta and her team have created an interactive online COVID-19 vaccine tracker, that provides real-time updates on progress in developing a safe and effective vaccine.

27 Oct 2020

Precise screening index pinpoints areas at risk for low-level lead exposure in Georgia

While many people think of lead poisoning as a problem of the past, chronic exposure still occurs in some communities that may be missed in limited screening programs for children's blood lead levels.

27 Oct 2020

10-24-year-olds are as susceptible to COVID-19 as older adults

In an attempt to replicate the results of previous studies, a team of researchers performed statistical analyses on COVID-19 prevalence data from the U.S. to compare the number of cases in adolescents and youth to that in older adults. Their work is published on the preprint server medRxiv.

27 Oct 2020

Population-based COVID-19 prevalence surveys in Europe and Americas show risk of bias

A team of researchers from the Federal University of Health Sciences of Porto Alegre and the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul performed a systematic review to assess these population-based COVID-19 prevalence surveys' reliability and biases qualitatively. Their study is published on the preprint server medRxiv.

26 Oct 2020

Taiwan and New Zealand offer effective lessons to eliminate COVID-19

Both Taiwan and New Zealand have successfully eliminated COVID-19 with world-leading pandemic responses. By taking a particularly proactive approach, Taiwan's response was probably the most effective and least disruptive of any country's, researchers say.

23 Oct 2020

Researchers develop lab-grown lung model to study SARS-CoV-2 infection

A team of Duke University researchers has developed a lab-grown living lung model that mimics the tiny air sacs of the lungs where coronavirus infection and serious lung damage take place.

23 Oct 2020