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 COVID-19 pandemic did more than overwhelm global healthcare systems. It also disrupted timely care for people experiencing strokes.

Published in European Medical Journal, a global review of 107 studies has found that patients delayed hospital visits, stroke-related hospital admissions fell and treatment became harder to access during the pandemic.

The review, which examined research published between December 2019 and September 2024, looked at how the pandemic affected stroke care from the moment symptoms began through hospital treatment and recovery. Researchers initially screened 1,405 studies before including 107 in their analysis.

Stroke Patients Delayed Going To Hospital

One of the alarming patterns among stroke victims was a delay in seeking medical help. People experiencing stroke symptoms were reluctant to go to hospitals because they feared catching COVID-19 or believed healthcare facilities were already overwhelmed.

The delay was particularly noticeable among people with milder stroke symptoms; some of whom reached hospitals after critical treatment windows had passed.

The findings are a cause of concern as stroke treatment is extremely time-sensitive. Delays can prevent patients from seeking timely treatments to restore blood flow to the brain.

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Stroke Admissions Declined

Several studies included in the review reported a decline in stroke admissions during the pandemic. One study found a 31% decrease in monthly admissions for ischaemic stroke, while another reported a 44% reduction.

The drop did not mean fewer people were having strokes. Instead, researchers found evidence that some patients may simply have avoided or delayed seeking emergency care.

When patients did reach hospitals, several studies found they were more likely to have more severe strokes than patients treated before the pandemic.

Also read: Innovations in Structural Heart Care: The Shift Towards Minimally Invasive Therapies

Stroke Treatment Was Delayed Inside Hospitals

The disruption was not limited to patients' decisions about when to seek help. Hospitals had to reorganise resources and reassign staff towards COVID-19 response. These changes affected stroke services and contributed to delays in treatment.

The review also identified increases in both symptom-to-door time, the period between stroke symptoms beginning and reaching hospital, and door-to-treatment time, the period between arriving at hospital and receiving treatment to restore blood flow. Ambulance services also faced additional pressure during the pandemic.

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Delays Affected Stroke Recovery

The review found evidence that the disruption was associated with poorer outcomes for some stroke patients. One study reported significantly greater disability at discharge during the pandemic, with a median modified Rankin Scale score of 4 compared with 2 before the pandemic. The difference remained at three months after the stroke.

Another analysis reported higher mortality at discharge among patients treated during the pandemic, at 7.7% compared with 2.5% in a pre-pandemic group.

Role Of Telemedicine In Stroke Care During Pandemic

Telemedicine refers to seeking healthcare remotely using technology, without the doctor and patient needing to be in the same physical location.

Telemedicine helped maintain some continuity of stroke care during the pandemic, but access was not even everywhere.

The review found that younger patients were more likely to use remote healthcare services, while older adults didn't.

This raises concerns about whether telemedicine can adequately support people who may have greater healthcare needs but face barriers to digital access.

The researchers added that said future preparedness should focus on keeping stroke services accessible, ensuring equitable access to telemedicine and educating patients about the need to seek emergency care promptly.

A few extra minutes during an upper gastrointestinal endoscopy may help doctors detect more gastric cancers and precancerous alternations, according to research recently discussed at the World Congress of Gastroenterology (WCOG) 2026 in New Delhi.

At WCOG, it was discussed that the quality and duration of an endoscopic examination can influence the chances of finding early cancer. An inspection time of an additional at least seven minutes was linked with about 3.4 times higher detection of gastric cancer and dysplasia.

The finding comes as gastrointestinal cancers continue to increase, contributing to a growing global health burden. GI cancers currently account for around one in four cancer cases and one in three cancer deaths worldwide. The overall burden of the disease is projected to nearly double by 2050.

Dr. Pramod Garg, Professor & Head, Department of Gastroenterology and Human Nutrition, AIIMS, New Delhi; President, Indian Society of Gastroenterology and Co-Chair, Steering Committee, WCOG 2026, said, “Earlier detection depends on both identifying people at risk and ensuring that diagnostic procedures are performed to the highest possible standard. High-quality endoscopy can create an important opportunity to identify disease at a stage when intervention can make a greater difference.”

Could Endoscopy Time Affect Cancer Detection?

Also read: WCOG 2026: How Infections, Metabolic Disease Are Changing Digestive Health

An upper gastrointestinal endoscopy allows doctors to examine the lining of the oesophagus, stomach, and upper part of the small intestine using a flexible camera device.

Simply inserting the scope and looking quickly may not be enough to identify subtle abnormalities. A more systematic examination allows the endoscopist more time to examine the stomach lining, identify suspicious areas, improve mucosal visualisation and document findings accordingly.

The WCOG discussion therefore puts focus on not just whether endoscopy is performed, but also on how long and how well it is performed.

The reported 3.4 times association highlights the value of a careful, detailed examination that could help detect changes related to cancer early, prompting timely treatment.

Also read: Fatty Liver, Chronic Gut Diseases And Worm Infections: India’s Changing Disease Burden

India's GI Cancer Burden

The changes in India's gastrointestinal cancer burden were also discussed, including growing concern around early-onset colorectal cancer. Researchers are examining whether genetics, environmental exposures and changes in the gut microbiome could be contributing to colorectal cancer appearing at younger ages.

WCOG 2026 also included concerns related gallbladder cancer, liver cancer and the rising role of metabolic risk factors. Discussions also focused on the use of AI in gastrointestinal diagnosis and the importance of validating these tools before introducing them in standard practice.

Dr. Govind Makharia, Professor, Department of Gastroenterology and Human Nutrition, AIIMS, New Delhi and Chairman, Local Organising Committee, WCOG 2026, said, “AI has the potential to strengthen diagnosis and decision-making across gastroenterology, while advanced endoscopy is expanding what can be treated through minimally invasive approaches. The next step is ensuring that these technologies are supported by robust evidence and integrated responsibly into clinical practice.”

H. pylori was also addressed as a preventable risk factor for gastric cancer.

Dr Barry Marshall, Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine, said, “H. pylori is much more than an ulcer organism. If the infection persists for many years, it can cause chronic inflammation in the stomach and increase the risk of gastric cancer. That gives us an opportunity because this is a potentially preventable cause of cancer.”

Advances in minimally invasive procedures like POEM, endoscopic submucosal dissection and therapeutic EUS were also discussed, although access to advanced GI care remains uneven.

The President of the United States, Donald Trump, has revealed that he takes aspirin every day, sharing that he has been doing so for decades because he believes it helps keep his blood “thin”.

He said it while discussing his aspirin use and the bruising that was recently seen on his knuckles. He also said that doctors have advised he take a lower dose.

“I take an aspirin a day. I don’t know if it works but psychologically I need it. It thins the hell out of your blood I guess. I don’t know if it works or not but I’ve been doing it for a long time. And here I am making speeches. I like Bayer aspirin. And I take the big one. They want me to go down to the 80. I take the 386. I don’t know what the hell it is. It’s a monster. They said, ‘Sir, you don’t need that!’ I said, do me a favor, I’ve been doing okay for 35 years. Leave me alone.”

So, does taking an aspirin every day actually protect the heart? And if yes, does a higher dose necessarily provide better results?

Aspirin Reduces Blood Clot Formation

Aspirin affects platelets, which are tiny components of blood that help form clots. By making platelets less likely to clump together, aspirin can reduce the formation of blood clots that could block an artery supplying the heart or brain.

This is why doctors may prescribe daily aspirin to people who have already had a heart attack, stroke, or procedures like coronary stent placement.

But aspirin does not make the blood “thin” in a literal sense. It changes the way blood platelets clot. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says daily aspirin can help people with cardiovascular disease or those who have already had a heart attack or stroke, but daily use is not suitable for everyone.

Aspirin can reduce the risk of certain blood clot formations, but it can also increase the risk of unwanted bleeding. The FDA warns that aspirin can lead to serious side effects like bleeding in the stomach and brain.

It recommends that people do not take daily aspirin without discussing it first with their healthcare professionals.

Mayo Clinic also says that daily aspirin is not right for everyone. Regular use can increase the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding and stomach ulcers, while in some people it can also increase the risk of a bleeding stroke.

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Who Should And Shouldn't Take It?

For people who have never had a heart attack or stroke or any other type of cardiovascular disease, taking aspirin routinely to prevent a cardiovascular event is generally not recommended.

The American Heart Association says routine daily aspirin is not recommended for most healthy adults without cardiovascular disease because its benefit can be offset by the risk of serious bleeding.

The FDA also says that for people without cardiovascular disease risk, the risks of long-term aspirin use may be greater than the benefits.

For someone who has already had a heart attack, stroke or any other cardiovascular event, doctors may prescribe daily aspirin because preventing another clot-related event can outweigh the bleeding risk.

According to Mayo Clinic, this is a secondary method of prevention. It says that the benefit of daily aspirin in this group is well established. This does not mean that patients should start, stop or change their aspirin dose on their own.

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Is A Bigger Aspirin Dose Better For Heart?

A higher dose does not automatically provide better protection against heart attacks. Low-dose aspirin prescribed for cardiovascular health is usually around 75 to 100 mg, with 81 mg frequently used.

Mayo Clinic says that the appropriate dose depends on the individual and should be discussed with a healthcare professional.

Taking higher doses of aspirin can increase the risk of bleeding. People with a history of stomach ulcers or gastrointestinal bleeding, bleeding disorders or aspirin allergy may also face greater risks.

The risk of bleeding also increases with age. The American Heart Association says routine aspirin for primary prevention is generally not recommended for healthy adults over 70.