Low-dose CT chest scans could help detect pneumonia in at-risk patients while exposing them to only small amounts of radiation, a new study has found. The research, published in Radiology: Cardiothoracic Imaging, shows that ultra-low-dose scans can effectively detect pneumonia in patients with compromised immune systems, enabling doctors to treat the infection before it becomes life-threatening. According to the researchers, these scans expose patients to just 2% of the radiation dose used in a standard CT scan.

"This study paves the way for safer, AI-driven imaging that reduces radiation exposure while preserving diagnostic accuracy,” lead researcher Dr Maximiliano Klug, a radiologist with the Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, Israel, said in a news release. He added that CT scans are the gold standard for detecting pneumonia but there are concerns regarding the risk posed by repeated exposure to radiation. There is a solution- ultra-low-dose CT scan. However, the problem is that these scans can be grainy and hard to read, researchers said.

Study Gives Solution To This

To overcome that, Klug's team developed an AI program that could help "de-noise" low-dose scans, making them sharper and easier to read. Between September 2020 and December 2022, 54 patients with compromised immune systems who had fevers underwent a pair of chest CT scans -- a normal dose scan and an ultra-low-dose scan. The AI program cleaned up the low-dose scan, and then both sets of images were given to a pair of radiologists for assessment. Radiologists had 100% accuracy in detecting pneumonia and other lung problems with the AI-cleaned low-dose scans, but 91% to 98% accuracy in examining the scans that hadn’t been improved through AI, results show.

"This pilot study identified infection with a fraction of the radiation dose," Klug said. "This approach could drive larger studies and ultimately reshape clinical guidelines, making denoised ultra-low dose CT the new standard for young immunocompromised patients.

How Can You Detect Pneumonia?

Pneumonia is a lung infection that causes the air sacs in the lungs to fill with fluid or pus and can be caused by bacteria, viruses, or fungi. The symptoms can range from milk to severe, which includes:

Coughing with or without cough

Fever

Chills

Trouble breathing

Chest pain, especially when breathing deeply or coughing

Sweating or chills

Rapid heart rate

Loss of appetite

Bluish skin, lips, and nails

Confusion.

How to detect Pneumonia in coughing newborns and toddlers?

Pneumonia can severely affect newborns and young children as their lungs are comparatively more sensitive. As per Dr Goyal, young children can cough for various reasons including seasonal infections and tonsillitis, which is very common in this age group. But if they look visibly irritable and have poor sleep patterns, then parents must reach out to an expert. "I am not saying that parents must visit a hospital but any local paediatrician would be able to detect pneumonia in your kid.

Some people love tea, some can't get enough of coffee, but rarely does one think about if the same could influence disease risk later in life. According to a new study, women's risk of osteoporosis could be influenced by their choice of tea or coffee. Osteoporosis is a common occurrence in women aged 50 years and above. Statistics suggest that one in three women will likely be diagnosed with the disease, which renders the body incapable of replacing old bone after it undergoes wear and tear. This means bones become weak, brittle, and more prone to fractures. Bone problems at an advanced age in women can also slow down healing.

High-risk groups for osteoporosis

Older women are at a higher risk of osteoporosis, and that is because of oestrogen. Oestrogen supports bone metabolism, and its levels drop after menopause. Surgery can help remove a woman's ovaries, thereby resulting in the same effect. Researchers at Flinders University in Australia evaluated tea- and coffee-drinking habits of approximately 9,700 US women aged 65 years and above. Participants were required to self-report their tendencies in the survey on four occasions over a 10-year period.

The study also gathered data on women's bone health, measuring bone mineral density in the hip and the narrow connection to the hip with X-ray beams to deduce mineral levels in the bone. Researchers found that women who regularly drank tea had significantly higher hip BMD than those who did not. This could be because of tea compounds known as catechins that could provide the boost cells need to build strong bones. Even smaller differences can significantly improve bone health.

What are the benefits of tea for women's health?

Researchers noted that tea intake could be particularly beneficial for women dealing with obesity. Coffee habits, alternatively, had a different impact on BMD. Studies suggest that women who drank more than five cups of coffee a day were more likely to have lower BMD levels, thereby suggesting that caffeine can negatively affect calcium absorption in the body. Furthermore, experts noted that drinking any amount of coffee can reduce BMD levels in women, especially those who consumed high levels of alcohol.

Scientists note that, because of the limited scope of the study, more research is required in this area to ascertain the results. However, the study offers insights into the possible benefits of drinking tea for women living with osteoporosis. It can go a long way in improving overall wellness and long-term bone health in women.

The research is published in Nutrients.

A team of scientists at South Africa’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases has identified the strain of the Hantavirus that has caused three deaths and infected seven so far aboard the MV Hondius ship in the Atlantic Ocean.

In a presentation to the parliament today, the South African Health Minister revealed that the Andes strain of hantavirus, which spreads human-to-human, has been identified in two people who came off the cruise ship.

“Incredible work of @nicd_sa, South Africa, in sequencing the #hantavirus. There has been excellent collaboration as @WHO

works to coordinate efforts and actions of governments, experts around the world, the Ship to keep people safe,” said Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, director of epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention at the World Health Organization (WHO), in a post on social media platform X.

The NICD scientists found that the Andes strain was the cause of infection in a Dutch woman who died in Johannesburg, and a British man who is still in hospital. Both had become ill on the ship, Reuters reported.

“This is the only strain that is known to cause human-to-human transmission, but such transmission is very rare and, as said earlier, only happens due to very close contact,” the Minister said.

Other strains of hantavirus are more commonly transmitted to humans through contact with infected rodents or their urine, droppings, or saliva.

Also read: Hantavirus Outbreak: WHO Flags 6 Suspected Cases; How The Rare Rodent-Borne Virus Spreads

What is Hantavirus? How Deadly Is The Andes Strain?

As per the WHO, hantaviruses are zoonotic viruses that naturally infect rodents and are occasionally transmitted to humans.

Globally, an estimated 100,000 to 200,000 hantavirus infections occur each year. The majority of these cases are in Asia, particularly China. Most are sporadic or occur in small clusters, linked to contact with infected rodents.

“Hantaviruses are a group of viruses carried by rodents that can cause severe disease in humans. Infection with hantaviruses is found in many parts of the world. Thousands of infections are estimated to occur each year," Van Kerkhove said.

The Ande virus is the only strain of virus with documented human-to-human transmission. It is more common in South America.

"Although uncommon, limited human‑to‑human transmission of HPS due to the Andes virus has been reported in community settings involving close and prolonged contact. Secondary infections among healthcare workers have been previously documented in healthcare facilities, though they remain rare,” WHO said in its situation report.

The WHO also currently assesses the risk to the global population from this event as low and will continue to monitor the epidemiological situation and update the risk assessment as more information becomes available.

"People really do need to understand that there are different degrees of person-to-person transmission," said Angela Rasmussen, a virologist with the University of Saskatchewan's Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization, as quoted by CBS News.

Read More: Hantavirus on Cruise Ship: Symptoms, Risks, and Prevention

In the case of hantavirus, individual people are usually the end of the line, Rasmussen said, noting that this makes this cluster of cases unusual.

"So this virus — right now anyways — doesn't seem to be as big a risk as something like flu," the expert said.

While symptoms might not appear for weeks, the strain can escalate quickly, leading to severe respiratory failure with a death rate of roughly 40 per cent.

Long day at work? Let's order in. Not feeling happy? How about a cheat meal! And so on - nowadays, the concept of cooking for oneself seems to have become outdated. But little do we realise that these ordering-in habits can cost you a great deal later - it turns out these can speed up ageing. And it does not end here; eating takeaway food regularly can take away months of your life, and even undo all the health benefits of regular exercise. Researchers at the Peking University Third Hospital in China studied 43,000 adults in the UK to come to this conclusion.

How does eating takeaway food affect health?

Researchers conducted blood tests on people who regularly eat takeaway food. They found that their biological age was about three months ahead compared to people who ate home-cooked food. This means that their kidney, liver and immune systems were getting worse at a faster rate than usual. Researchers said that treating yourself to junk food every day could undo the benefits of regular workouts, too. Over the years, these effects could knock off months from your life.

The study, which was published in the BMC Medicine journal, also noted that the three-month difference in biological ageing, driven by dietary habits, might appear insignificant, but it translates to about a 2.2 to 2.7 per cent increase in early death risk. Over time, this can account for 16 per cent of the severe ageing caused by smoking. Some of the effects, as per experts, were linked to obesity and weight gain. However, people's health was worse even if they were not fat. Some of the effects were because of the weight gain and obesity link, but in the case of some participants, the effects were worse, even when they were not fat.

Why is takeaway food discouraged?

The study shows that takeaway food is harmful because of its high fat, salt, sugar and calorie content. But more importantly, it is about the absence of nutrients like fibre and protein. These foods are more likely to be eaten quickly and alone, without paying much attention to the poor quality of ingredients used. To make matters worse, plastic packaging contains harmful chemicals like PFAS - upon heating, these can release cancer-causing components. Researchers said that these factors could be associated with inflammation in blood vessels, a dip in levels of healthy gut bacteria, and a heightened risk of heart disease or type-2 diabetes.

Experts noted that the effects in terms of accelerated ageing and regular consumption of junk food can cancel the benefits of even regular workouts.