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.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday withdrew its decades-old guidance that all newborns in the country should be vaccinated against hepatitis B at birth. Instead, the decision has now been shifted to parents, who are advised to consult a healthcare provider when deciding whether babies born to hepatitis B-negative mothers should receive the vaccine, including the birth dose.

The change follows a recommendation made by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s vaccine advisory panel, marking a significant shift in public health policy. Earlier this month, the panel suggested that the birth dose be limited to newborns whose mothers test positive for hepatitis B or whose infection status is unknown. The CDC approved this recommendation as official policy on Tuesday. Here is what this change means for newborns moving forward:

CDC Ends Guidance That All Newborns Should Get Hepatitis B Vaccine

Under the updated guidance, if parents decide against vaccinating their baby at birth but later believe the shot is necessary, the CDC now advises waiting until the child is at least two months old before administering the first dose. Since 1991, U.S. health authorities have supported universal infant vaccination against hepatitis B, with the first of three doses typically given shortly after birth. CDC recommendations influence health insurance coverage decisions and serve as a key reference point for doctors when determining vaccine schedules.

Public health experts have raised concerns that the shift toward what the CDC calls “individual-based decision-making” may leave more children vulnerable to the virus and could encourage families to skip vaccination without a strong federal directive. Kennedy, who has long opposed vaccines, has already introduced sweeping changes to the country’s vaccination policies.

CDC New Guidance On Hepatitis B Vaccine: What Does This Mean For Newborns?

Rather than advising hepatitis B vaccination for every newborn, the CDC now formally recommends that women who test negative for the virus discuss with their healthcare providers whether their babies should receive the first dose within 24 hours of birth. According to NBC News, the agency is also evaluating another proposal from the advisory panel, which suggests parents consult doctors about testing children for hepatitis B antibodies before deciding on second doses of the vaccine. Typically, the hepatitis B vaccine is administered as a three-dose series during infancy.

This policy shift stands out as one of the clearest departures from established medical consensus reflected in current CDC guidance. During discussions, the advisory committee relied on selective data and misinformation, while overlooking decades of research showing that hepatitis B vaccines are both safe and highly effective when given soon after birth.

“Removing the recommendation for newborns increases the likelihood that case numbers will rise again. This makes America sicker,” Senator Bill Cassidy, R-La., a liver specialist who has treated hepatitis B patients, wrote on X earlier this month. Despite the change, pediatricians are still expected to encourage parents to vaccinate their newborns.

The Department of Health and Human Services has stated that the updated guidance will not change insurance coverage for the vaccine. The shots will also remain available to newborns through the Vaccines for Children Program, which provides vaccines at no cost to uninsured or underinsured families.

Last month, the CDC also revised a webpage that had previously stated clearly that vaccines do not cause autism. The updated language now says studies have not ruled out a link, despite decades of scientific evidence showing no connection between vaccines and autism.

No more scribbling, notes a BBC report from October 1, 2025, where the Punjab and Haryana court tells doctors to fix their handwriting. Now, the National Medical Commission or NMC has issued nationwide order to the doctors to ensure their prescriptions are written in a clear and legible manner.

While jokes around the notoriously bad handwriting of many doctors that only can be read by pharmacist are common in India, but after the High Court's ruling, this joke is taken seriously. The High Court noted that "legible medical prescription is a fundamental right" as it can make a difference between life and death.

Also Read: Delhi Sees Rising Cancer Burden With Sharp Increase in Oral and Lung Cancers; Breast Cancer Remains Most Common

What Are The New NMC Guidelines On Doctor's Handwriting?

Under the new directive, the NMC ordered that doctors must:

• Write prescriptions in clear, legible handwriting, avoiding ambiguity.
• Arbitrary or unclear prescription writing will no longer be acceptable, as it compromises patient safety.
• Subcommittees will be formed in all medical colleges to monitor prescription practices and ensure compliance.
• Medical students will be taught the importance of clear prescription writing, making it a core part of clinical training.

The Background Of NMC Guidelines

The Punjab and Haryana High Court ordered doctors to fix their handwritings while it was looking at a case that involved allegations of rape. While checking a medico-legal report written by a government doctor who examined the woman, the court found it incomprehensible.

Also Read: Delhi Is a Gas Chamber Where Nothing Comes In or Goes Out, Says Expert; Neighboring States Not to Blame for AQI

Justice Jasgurpreet Singh Puri said, "It shook the conscience of this court as not even a word or a letter was legible".

"At a time when technology and computers are easily accessible, it is shocking that government doctors are still writing prescriptions by hand which cannot be read by anybody except perhaps some chemists," said Justice Puri.

Importance Of Clear Prescriptions

The World Health Organization (WHO) identifies medication errors as a major global patient safety challenge, contributing to avoidable injuries and deaths worldwide. Illegible prescriptions are a well-recognised cause of such errors.

A clear and readable prescription also:

Prevents misinterpretation

Poor handwriting leads to misinterpretation of the intended drug name, dosage, or instructions. Many drugs have names that look or sound alike, making clarity critical.

Ensures the right dosage

Unclear instructions when it comes to dosing result in giving out doses that are ten or one hundred times the correct amount, leading to toxicity or therapeutic failure.

Empowers patient understanding

When the patients are able to clearly read and understand the prescriptions and medication labels, they are more likely to take their medications correctly, reducing the margin for errors.

Reduces healthcare costs

Medication errors resulting from unclear prescriptions lead to increased hospital admissions, prolonged lengths of stay, and additional costs, placing a significant burden on the patient and the healthcare system.

Oral cancer cases recorded the sharpest in Delhi in 2025, as per the Union Health Ministry data presented in the Parliament. While there is no definitive explanation provided by the report by the Union Health Ministry, previous reports show that widespread use of tobacco has increased, and accounted for about 30% of all oral cancer cases in India alone.

As per the report shared by the Union Health Ministry, a 5.1% increase was scene in the reported increase of oral cancer, while lung cancer rose by 4.9% between the period 2023 and 2025.

Also Read: ‘Fix Your Handwriting’: Indian Doctors Told to Write Clear, Legible Prescriptions Under New Rules

The data showed that lung cancer increased among women, and it rose to 6.5%. In numbers, this would make 686 cases in 2025, which is up from the 644 cases recorded in 2024, and 604 in 2023. Among men, oral cancer had the highest growth, with a 5.8% increase. This led to 2,717 cases in 2025, compared to 2,569 cases in 2024 and 2,429 cases in 2023.

However, breast cancer remained the most prevalent cancer in the city. Data from the National Cancer Registry Programme indicate a steady rise in reported breast cancer cases, increasing from 3,198 in 2023 to 3,260 in 2024 and 3,321 in 2025. Oral cancer ranked as the second most common cancer overall, with combined cases among men and women reaching 3,208 in 2025.

A closer look at the data shows that oral cancer continued to rise in the city over the past three years. In 2023, Delhi reported 2,901 cases, including 2,429 among men and 472 among women. The number rose to 3,051 cases in 2024, with 2,569 cases in men and 482 in women. Among women, cases increased slightly further to 491 in 2025.

The International Journal of Research in Medical Sciences provide the tobacco use, betel quid chewing has seen a rising trend in India. Tobacco use includes chewing gutka and khaini in rural areas as well as smoking cigarettes in urban area, which continues to be the nation's leading preventable cause of cancer.

Cervical Cancer Shows a Decline

Cervical cancer followed a different pattern. Cases among women fell from 741 in 2023 to 716 in 2024, and then to 692 in 2025. This reflects a year-on-year decline of around 3.4 percent over both periods.

Rising Trends in Other Cancers Among Men

Among men, oral cancer showed the sharpest increase. Lung cancer cases also rose, climbing from 1,668 in 2023 to 1,814 in 2025. Prostate cancer followed a similar upward trend, with reported cases increasing from 1,168 in 2023 to 1,301 in 2025.

Delhi’s High Cancer Incidence Rate

The health ministry has pointed to Delhi’s relatively high Age-Adjusted Incidence Rate of cancer. Between 2015 and 2019, the AAIR stood at 146.7 per one lakh population among men and 132.5 among women. These figures are higher than those reported in cities such as Mumbai, Kolkata, Pune and Ahmedabad. The AAIR allows cancer rates to be compared fairly across regions with different age profiles.

Treatment Burden Extends Beyond Delhi

It is also important to note that Delhi attracts a large number of cancer patients from across north India and other parts of the country. Major tertiary care centres, including AIIMS and the Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute and Research Centre, contribute to a higher treatment load in the city.