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.

Canada has never reported a case of Ebola, yet Nova Scotia has become one of the first places in the world where humans are receiving an experimental vaccine against the deadly virus.

The first participant received Moderna’s experimental mRNA-1469 vaccine in Truro, Nova Scotia, on August 3. The Phase 1 trial is being conducted at three Canadian sites in Truro, Halifax and Toronto and aims to enrol around 80 healthy adults.

Why Is Canada Testing An Ebola Vaccine?

Also read: Ebola Outbreak in Congo Surpasses 4,000 Cases; Officials To Probe Whether Bundibugyo Virus Is Mutating

The current outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is being caused by Bundibugyo ebolavirus, a relatively rare Ebola species for which there is currently no approved vaccine or treatment.

More than 3,800 infections and over 1,700 deaths have been reported in the outbreak, making it the second-largest Ebola outbreak on record.

Existing Ebola vaccines are largely designed to protect against the Zaire species, which caused previous major outbreaks. They cannot simply protect the masses against Bundibugyo.

This has created a dangerous situation: an outbreak is already underway, but scientists do not yet have a licensed vaccine specifically targeting the strain driving it.

Why Nova Scotia Is Chosen For Testing Ebola Vaccine?

Also read: Ebola Outbreak: Moderna Begins First Human Trial Of Bundibugyo Vaccine As Cases Rise to 3,748

Nova Scotia was not selected because Ebola is circulating there. In fact, Health Canada says there have been no cases of Ebola disease in Canada.

But, the province has something far more useful for an early vaccine trial: years of experience conducting vaccine research.

The Canadian Center for Vaccinology, a collaboration involving Dalhousie University, IWK Health and Nova Scotia Health, has extensive experience in vaccine development and clinical trials.

Moderna said Canada was selected because of its experience with early-stage clinical trials, Health Canada's regulations and the country's long history of contribution to research on filoviruses, the family of viruses that includes Ebola.

“Canadian researchers and participants are contributing an important first step in a broader international effort to develop a vaccine against a form of Ebola for which no approved protection is currently available,” Hamilton Bennett, Moderna's executive director of global health security and R&D partnerships, said.

About The Ebola Trial In Nova Scotia

Phase 1 trials primarily examine whether a vaccine is safe, what dose should be used and whether it produces an immune response.

Participants are given the vaccine, not the Ebola virus, and they cannot get Ebola from the vaccine trial itself.

The mRNA-1469 vaccine uses the same mRNA technology that Moderna used for its COVID-19 vaccine. It is designed to teach the immune system to recognise Bundibugyo virus and produce an immune response without exposing volunteers to the live virus.

The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) has committed up to US$50 million to support Moderna's vaccine development. If the vaccine eventually proves successful, Moderna has committed to making at least 500,000 doses available to low- and middle-income countries.

Dalhousie researchers are studying the Bundibugyo virus itself. Recent work helped identify a genetically distinct variant circulating in the DRC and investigate possible treatment options.

Phase 1 of the trial can establish safety and immune responses, but larger Phase 2 and Phase 3 studies will be needed to determine whether the vaccine actually prevents Ebola disease.

National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya has urged parents to vaccinate their children against measles, saying, “I trust the science,” as the United States faces its worst measles surge in decades.

Speaking to CBS News’ Face the Nation on August 9, Bhattacharya said vaccination remains the best way to protect children from the highly contagious disease.

“If you want to protect your kids from these sort of preventable diseases, yes, you should vaccinate your kids,” Bhattacharya said. He added that he has been “very, very clear” about recommending measles vaccination.

His comments come as the US has recorded 2,465 confirmed measles cases in 2026 as of August 6, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The figure has already surpassed the total reported in 2025 and represents the highest annual case count in the country in about 35 years.

Could US Could Lose Its Measles Elimination Status?

Also read: CDC Recommends All International Travelers To Get Measles Vaccine

Bhattacharya pointed to declining public trust in health institutions as one factor behind the resurgence.

“There’s been a lot of outbreaks, not just the United States, but around the world,” he said. “A lot of that has to do with sort of a collapse in public trust in a lot of science.”

The CDC says only 10 US states had measles vaccination coverage above the approximately 95% level needed to maintain community protection during the previous school year.

The growing outbreak has raised another concern, which is whether the US could lose its measles elimination status.

Experts have warned that continued transmission could jeopardize the status the country has maintained since 2000.

A recent analysis described losing elimination status in 2026 as highly likely unless vaccination coverage improves and ongoing transmission is interrupted.

For parents, the message from the NIH chief is straightforward: the measles vaccine remains the scientific evidence-backed way to protect children. “I trust the science,” Bhattacharya said.

Jay Bhattacharya Pushes Back Against Vaccine Fear

Also read: Dr. Erica Schwartz Confirmed As CDC’s First Permanent Director In Nearly A Year

Bhattacharya also addressed concerns about children returning to school while measles is circulating.

“It is even more important that these kids go to school,” he said, warning against creating fear around unvaccinated children.

“That’s a tremendous mistake,” Bhattacharya said, arguing that parents should vaccinate their children rather than fear school attendance.

His comments are notable amid renewed debate over childhood vaccines under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has a long history of vaccine skepticism but recently also urged parents to vaccinate children against measles.

How Effective Is The MMR Vaccine?

The measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine remains one of the strongest tools against measles. Two doses are about 97% effective at preventing measles, while one dose provides about 93% protection.

That protection becomes particularly important in schools and communities because measles spreads extremely easily. When vaccination rates fall below the level needed for herd immunity, the virus can move rapidly through pockets of susceptible people.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has issued a new public health alert for 18 meat and poultry products that contain recalled jalapeño peppers potentially contaminated with Salmonella, expanding the food-safety concerns surrounding an outbreak in multiple states in the US.

The products were made using jalapeños that had already been recalled by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Many of the affected products are sold under brands including Taylor Farms, Walmart’s Marketside and H-E-B. The products have expiry dates extending through August 15.

The USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) said the issue came to light after the FDA notified the agency that several meat and poultry establishments had received the recalled jalapeños as an ingredient.

The agency warned that some of the products may still be sitting in consumers’ refrigerators or freezers, advising people not to eat them. Retailers have also been told not to sell the affected products.

How Did Jalapeños Expand To A Meat And Poultry Problem?

The latest alert is part of a much larger Salmonella investigation. According to the FDA and CDC, the outbreak involves Salmonella Javiana linked to fresh jalapeños grown in Sinaloa, Mexico, and distributed in the US by Coast Citrus Distributors.

As of August 5, 345 people across 27 states had been infected, with 36 hospitalizations and no reported deaths. The outbreak began between June 19 and July 20.

Investigators found that 177 of 191 interviewed patients, or 93%, had eaten at a Mexican-style restaurant before becoming sick. This included people who had eaten at Chipotle and QDOBA locations.

The FDA's investigation identified a common grower in Sinaloa as the most likely source. Coast Citrus has agreed to recall the remaining implicated peppers and has stopped importing from that grower.

Also read: Maharashtra Becomes Second Indian State To Ban Sale Of Fake Paneer: Here's Why It Can Be Harmful

Why Is USDA Involved?

This case highlights how a contaminated ingredient can move through the food supply chain and end up in products that are not immediately connected to the outbreak.

While the FDA regulates most fresh produce, the USDA's FSIS oversees federally regulated meat and poultry products.

Once contaminated jalapeños were used as ingredients in meat and poultry products, the issue crossed into USDA-regulated food.

Also read: Nearly 1.6 Million Dozen Eggs Recalled in US Over Potential Salmonella Contamination: FDA

What Are The Symptoms Of Salmonella?

Young children, older adults and people with weakened immune systems are at greater risk of developing severe illness.

Most importantly, contaminated food may look, smell and taste completely normal, meaning consumers cannot rely on appearance or taste to determine whether the food is safe.

Consumers who have purchased products covered by the USDA alert should not eat them. They should either discard them away or return them to the place of purchase.

Anyone who develops symptoms after eating a potentially contaminated product should contact a healthcare provider and disclose the possible Salmonella exposure.