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.

A type of common diabetes drugs prescribed to millions of diabetics has hidden, life-threatening complications, especially among those with certain risk factors.

The findings are based on a new study published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. It studied nearly 280,000 people with type 2 diabetes treated with SGLT2 inhibitors, a class of drugs that includes dapagliflozin, empagliflozin, canagliflozin and ertugliflozin.

A research team from Karolinska Institute found that some patients were more likely to develop diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) while taking these drugs.

The research comes after a study showed deaths from ketoacidosis are on the rise in the UK. Last year researchers from Imperial College London found ketoacidosis cases increased by a massive percentage of 81 per cent between 2015 and 2023.

What Is Diabetic Ketoacidosis And What Are Its Warning Signs?

Its symptoms can include excessive thirst, urinating frequently, stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and blurred vision. More serious warning signs include deep or unusual breathing, fruity breath, extreme tiredness, sleepiness, or confusion.

Researchers said that developing an infection was the most common trigger of ketoacidosis. They also said that kidney problems, stroke and major surgery were also seen as triggers in patients who developed it.

Also read: Thailand’s HIV Cases Cross 550,000 In 2026; Over 25,000 Among 15–24s

What Are The Study's Findings?

SGLT2 inhibitors reduce blood sugar by helping the kidneys remove excess glucose through urine. They are widely used in type 2 diabetes treatment as their benefits extend to the heart and kidneys as well. Some studies have also linked them to weight loss.

However, these medicines can encourage the body to rely more heavily on fat for energy. This process can increase ketone production, increasing the risk of ketoacidosis in susceptible patients.

The study found that the risk was particularly high among people who had previously experienced ketoacidosis, had high blood sugar, were underweight, or showed signs of malnutrition.

Patients with a history of dangerously low blood sugar (hypoglycaemia) were also at increased risk.

Also read: Once-Weekly Oral Combination HIV Pill Shows Promise As Alternative to Daily Treatment

Greater Risk At The Beginning Of The Treatment

While patients faced their greatest risk during the first few months after starting an SGLT2 inhibitor, researchers found that the risk persisted for as long as they continued taking the medicine.

This finding is contradictory to previous research that has largely focused on ketoacidosis occurring soon after treatment begins.

Peter Ueda, assistant professor at the Department of Medicine at the Karolinska Institute, said the findings should not be interpreted as a reason for patients to stop their medication.

“SGLT2 inhibitors provide medical benefits for many patients,” Ueda said.“Our findings are not primarily about avoiding treatment, but about improving our ability to identify high-risk patients and use these medicines more safely,” he added.

The findings can help doctors identify people who may need closer monitoring before and during treatment, particularly if they have previous ketoacidosis, are underweight or malnourished, or develop an infection.

Thailand has recorded 557,993 cumulative HIV cases in 2026, according to health authorities, who said the number of new infections has fallen by 12,000 over the past three years.

Thirteen of Thailand’s 77 provinces now record more than 10,000 cases each, Bangkok Post reported.

Regions Affected

The Central region bears the highest HIV burden, with several provinces reporting more than 10,000 cumulative cases:

• Bangkok: 88,535 cumulative HIV cases — the highest in Thailand.
• Chonburi: 31,072 cases.
• Chiang Mai: 23,949 cases.
• Chiang Rai: 17,524 cases.
• Other provinces with over 10,000 cases: Nakhon Ratchasima, Samut Prakan, Nonthaburi, Khon Kaen, Pathum Thani, Udon Thani, Rayong, Songkhla and Ubon Ratchathani.
• Songkhla: 10,644 cumulative cases, the highest in Health Region 12, according to the Office of Disease Prevention and Control Region 12.

Youths at High Risk

Young people aged 15 to 24 are a particular concern, accounting for more than 25,000 cumulative cases, the report said.

Officials said infections in the region were concentrated among young people and the working-age population, with unprotected sex remaining a major factor.

HIV Treatment

More than 83% of people receiving HIV care are on continuous antiretroviral treatment in the country, and have achieved effective viral suppression, reducing the risk of serious illness and onward transmission, the report said.

Why New Infections Remain a Concern

Speaking to local media, Associate Professor Dr. Opas Putcharoen, Deputy Director of the AIDS and Infectious Diseases Research Center at the Thai Red Cross, said new cases will continue to rise in the country due to increased testing, which identifies nearly 60,000 people who are unaware they are infected, combined with an estimated 8,000–9,000 new cases annually.

The most concerning and critical group is youth aged 15–24. The reason new infections have not decreased is insufficient knowledge about HIV and AIDS, Thairath Online reported.

He noted that many people underestimate their risk and therefore do not protect themselves. He stressed the urgency of campaigns encouraging people to know their HIV status so those who test positive can start treatment and reduce transmission.

Health officials said more efforts were needed to expand access to testing, encourage consistent condom use and ensure people living with HIV remain on antiretroviral treatment.

They said early diagnosis and continued treatment reduce infections and improve the long-term health of people living with HIV.

What Is HIV?

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) attacks the body's immune system, increasing the chances of developing serious infections or cancer.

The virus specifically targets CD4 cells, which are crucial for the body’s defence against infections. As HIV progresses, it destroys these cells, weakening the immune system over time. If left untreated, this continuous damage can lead to AIDS.

There is no cure for HIV, but prevention and treatment options are available.

For HIV, the primary treatment goal is to suppress the virus to undetectable levels, thus maintaining a strong immune system and preventing further transmission of the virus. People living with HIV can often live long, healthy lives if they adhere to ART.

How To Stay Safe?

According to UNAIDS, HIV risk can be effectively prevented by combining barrier methods, antiretroviral medications, and harm reduction strategies. Key prevention methods include:

• Use Condoms
• Using Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP)
• Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP): Emergency antiretroviral medication must be started within 72 hours of a possible HIV exposure to stop the infection.
• Avoid sharing needles, syringes, or other injection and sharp equipment, and use sterile instruments for any medical or body-modification procedures.

A once-weekly oral HIV combination therapy may offer an effective alternative to standard daily treatment, according to results from a global phase 3 clinical trial.

The weekly tablet combines two long-acting antiretroviral medicines — Merck’s islatravir and Gilead Sciences’ lenacapavir — with complementary mechanisms of action that enable once-weekly dosing. The combination could reduce the burden of lifelong daily pill-taking for people living with HIV, revealed the trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine last week.

What Did The New Trial Show?

The randomized, double-blind trial evaluated a once-weekly combination tablet containing islatravir and lenacapavir in adults whose HIV had remained suppressed for at least six months while taking the daily regimen bictegravir–emtricitabine–tenofovir alafenamide by Gilead.

The international study involved 607 adults across 106 clinical sites in 12 countries. Participants who had maintained viral suppression on standard daily treatment were randomly assigned either to switch to the once-weekly tablet or remain on their existing daily medication.

After 48 weeks, the once-weekly regimen proved non-inferior to the standard once-daily treatment. Overall, 93.4% of participants taking the weekly regimen and 92.4% of those continuing daily therapy maintained viral suppression.

No participants receiving the weekly treatment experienced virological failure. At week 48, no participants taking the once-weekly regimen had a viral load of 50 copies per milliliter or higher, compared with one participant (0.3%) in the daily-treatment group.

None of the participants developed resistance to either islatravir or lenacapavir.

CD4+ T-Cell Levels Remained Stable

Levels of CD4+ T-cells and total lymphocytes, which are immune cells that help fight infections, remained stable in both groups.

Earlier studies of higher daily doses of islatravir raised concerns about declines in immune cell counts.

Comparable Safety Profile

About 80% of participants in each group experienced at least one mild or moderate adverse event, such as headache or diarrhea.

Serious adverse events were less common, occurring in 16 participants (5.3%) receiving the weekly regimen and 14 participants (4.6%) receiving daily therapy.

Six participants in the weekly regimen group and five in the daily-treatment group discontinued treatment due to adverse events. No deaths were reported.

“As such, these findings support the safety of the current weekly 2-mg [milligram] dose of islatravir,” the researchers wrote in the paper.

Both Drugs Are FDA-approved

Both islatravir and lenacapavir are US FDA-approved, but their combination is not.

Islatravir is approved by the FDA in combination with doravirine and is marketed as Idvynso. It is prescribed as a daily oral treatment for virologically suppressed adults.

Lenacapavir is also approved by the FDA as a multi-drug component for treatment-resistant HIV, marketed as Sunlenca. It is also approved as a twice-yearly injection for HIV prevention or PrEP, marketed as Yeztugo.

The study remains ongoing and participants will continue to be followed for a total of 96 weeks to assess longer-term safety and effectiveness.

Could Reduce ‘Pill Fatigue’

The researchers said that the once-weekly oral regimen could also help address “pill fatigue,” or the mental and emotional burden of taking medication every day.

For some patients, a weekly oral regimen may be more convenient than long-acting injectable HIV therapies, which require regular clinic visits.

“The first ever weekly oral therapy for the treatment of HIV could offer welcome relief from the burden of life-long daily pill-taking for people living with HIV. This is especially important for people that are experiencing stigma and people with other HIV-associated health conditions who are taking multiple other tablets,” said Professor Chloe Orkin MBE, Professor of Infection and Inequities and Dean for Healthcare Transformation at Queen Mary University of London.