Geography and age drive racial and ethnic disparities in hospital mortality for paediatric community-acquired pneumonia in the United States: a retrospective population based cohort study of hospitalized patients.

Background: Racial disparities in the outcomes of adult community-acquired pneumonia are well described. However, the presence of racial and ethnic disparities in paediatric community-acquired pneumonia and the mechanisms underlying these disparities remain unclear. Motivated by disparities related to age and geography in paediatric sepsis, we evaluated the association between the joint exposure of race/ethnicity, age, and geographic region and mortality for community-acquired pneumonia to provide opportunities for assessment of future interventions that provide equitable healthcare.

Toward non-clinical validation of fractional flow reserve simulation software: A generic coronary artery geometry.

Medical image-based diagnostic techniques have become increasingly common in the clinic. Estimating fractional flow reserve in coronary stenoses from medical image data is among the most prominent examples. The modeling techniques used in these clinical tools require rigorous experimental validation yet there is currently no standardized, public toolset to help assess model credibility.

Breast cancer risk and prevention in 2024: An overview from the Breast Cancer UK - Breast Cancer Prevention Conference.

The Breast Cancer UK-Breast Cancer Prevention Conference addressed risk from environmental pollutants and health behaviour-related breast-cancer risk. Epidemiological studies examining individual chemicals and breast cancer risk have produced inconclusive results including endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) Bisphenol A, per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances as well as aluminium. However, laboratory studies have shown that multiple EDCs, can work together to exhibit effects, even when combined at levels that alone are ineffective.

Assessing Social Determinants of Health During Critical Illness: Implications and Methodologies.

A growing body of literature has identified social determinants of health (SDoH) as potential contributors to health disparities in pediatric critical illness. Pediatric critical care providers should use validated screening tools to identify unmet social needs and ensure appropriate referral through multisector partnerships. Pediatric critical care researchers should consider factors outside of race and insurance status and explore the association between neighborhood-level factors and disparate health outcomes during critical illness.