Epidemiology News and Research

RSS

New dashboard tracks flesh-eating screwworm threat across the United States

In the 1950s, the New World screwworm cost U.S. livestock producers tens of millions of dollars a year, as much as $50 to $100 million annually in the hardest-hit Southwest, before it was eradicated from the United States and pushed south to Panama.

11 Aug 2026

Rare cruise ship virus outbreak highlights public messaging lessons and disease preparedness

A small outbreak of a rare hantavirus on a cruise ship earlier this year captured worldwide attention and sparked concerns about a possible new pandemic.

10 Aug 2026

New USC center seeks answers to sex differences in aging

Women live longer than men in nearly every country in the world, yet they experience higher rates of disability, dementia and many other age-related conditions.

7 Aug 2026

Genetic analysis of 1 million people points to FNIP1 as a promising metabolic target

Mega-scale exome sequencing of 1,032,116 people identified 59 independent genes linked to the TG:HDL ratio, including 44 rare-coding associations not detected in the previous largest analysis. Ultra-rare FNIP1 loss-of-function variants were associated with favorable fat distribution, lower liver fat and glycemia, and around 60% lower odds of a composite cardiometabolic disease outcome.

7 Aug 2026

Firearm injury patients face measurable risk of bacterial infections

A new study from researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) found that bacterial infections develop in approximately 5 percent of adults hospitalized with firearm injuries, with most infections occurring during the initial hospitalization rather than after patients return home.

6 Aug 2026

NEWS2 score may improve antibiotic decisions in suspected sepsis

A study of nearly 100,000 adults treated for suspected infection suggests that the National Early Warning Score (NEWS2), a score based on routinely collected vital signs that is widely used to identify patients at risk of clinical deterioration, may help clinicians identify which patients are most likely to benefit from immediate antibiotic treatment and which may safely undergo further evaluation before receiving antibiotics.

6 Aug 2026

Healthy midlife habits linked to longer dementia-free years

Having normal blood pressure, no diabetes, and not smoking from age 48 to 68, are associated with nearly 13 additional years on average of dementia-free life, a new study shows.

6 Aug 2026

NIH funds Boston University center for Alzheimer's prevention studies

Maria Glymour, Andrew Stokes, and Deborah Carr will lead the Boston University-Quantitative Population Science and Healthy Cognitive Aging Research Program (BU-SHARP) to foster national research collaboration on preventing and ameliorating the consequences of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias in disproportionately affected populations.

5 Aug 2026

Study finds no link between newborn circumcision and autism risk

In a cohort of nearly 3,000 boys followed from birth into childhood, young boys who were circumcised just after birth did not have a higher risk of autism, according to a study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

4 Aug 2026

New study advances understanding of dementia after age 90

It may seem natural to assume that people experience cognitive decline after age 90, but until recently, researchers had limited evidence about how advanced age affects the brain.

4 Aug 2026

Blood filtration method helps clear circulating lipids and toxic microplastics

The machine is not new. Some version of it has run in hospital treatment rooms for about four decades, drawing blood from one arm, separating out the plasma, passing it across a filter or an adsorber, and returning it to the other arm.

4 Aug 2026

Airplane wastewater pilot shows how airports could track pathogens across borders

Researchers showed that airplane wastewater from a shared US-UK transatlantic route could be collected and analyzed to detect respiratory and enteric pathogen genetic material. The pilot also captured SARS-CoV-2 lineage patterns, including earlier detection of XEC on UK-origin flights, while showing the need for harmonized assays and broader sampling.

4 Aug 2026

Prediction model can estimate heart disease risk in women earlier in life

McGill University researchers have developed a new tool to identify heart disease risk in women earlier in life.

3 Aug 2026

Coastal residents more likely to have worse midlife health

People who live by the coast in midlife are more likely to have worse health, finds a new study in England and Wales led by UCL researchers.

30 Jul 2026

Program introduces Florida students to virology and pandemic preparedness

Thirty outstanding high school students from 18 communities across Florida arrived in Tampa last week for the Global Virus Network (GVN) Global Guardians for Pandemic Preparedness Program, curious about viruses and considering careers in science.

30 Jul 2026

Pork supply chains may be shaping the global spread of drug-resistant Salmonella

Researchers linked 129,136 global human and swine Salmonella genomes with sampling from a Guangdong pork supply chain to examine how downstream stages relate to antimicrobial resistance. The study suggests slaughterhouse and retail interfaces may concentrate S. 4,[5],12:i:- ST34, resistant strains, and mobile resistance elements, supporting broader One Health surveillance beyond farms.

30 Jul 2026