📊 Category

epidemiology

227 papers

Epidemiology is the study of how diseases spread through populations and what factors influence their patterns. Rather than focusing on individual patients, this field examines broader trends to identify outbreaks, track transmission, and guide public health decisions. By analyzing data on infection rates and risk factors, researchers work to prevent future health crises and protect communities worldwide.

On Gist.Science, we process every new preprint in this category directly from medRxiv to make these critical findings instantly accessible. For each study, we provide both a plain-language explanation for general readers and a detailed technical summary for specialists. This dual approach ensures that vital insights into disease dynamics are understood clearly and quickly by everyone who needs them.

Explore the latest research below to see how scientists are currently mapping disease trends and developing strategies to safeguard global health.

Unscheduled bleeding and endometrial cancer in women on postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy and their matched controls: protocol for a descriptive cohort study using the Orchid-e database

This paper outlines the protocol for a descriptive cohort study using the ORCHID-e database to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of unscheduled bleeding for endometrial cancer in postmenopausal women taking hormone replacement therapy compared to matched controls, aiming to inform guidelines on unnecessary referrals and invasive testing.

Smith, M., Dixon, S., Ziyenga, S., Hirst, J. A., Bankhead, C. R., Nicholson, B. D.2026-04-18📊 epidemiology

Risk of Interstitial Lung Disease in COVID-19 Patients with Autoimmune Diseases Treated with Antiviral Agents

This retrospective cohort study utilizing TriNetX data found no statistically significant difference in the risk of developing interstitial lung disease between COVID-19 patients with autoimmune diseases treated with Paxlovid versus those treated with Molnupiravir, suggesting both antivirals are safe options regarding this specific complication for this vulnerable population.

Cheng, I.-H., Wang, Y.-H., Hung, Y.-m., Wei, J. C.-C.2026-04-17📊 epidemiology

The epidemiological scenario of leptospirosis in Brazil from 2015 to 2024: An ecological study of socio-environmental and climatic determinants.

This ecological study of 31,397 leptospirosis cases in Brazil from 2015 to 2024 reveals that disease incidence and lethality are driven by socio-environmental vulnerabilities, such as poor sanitation and low education, and are significantly influenced by regional climatic variations linked to El Niño events.

Fernandes, G. S. C., Azevedo, B. O. P., Damiano, D. K., Lima, M. V. R., Macena, P. d. P., Teixeira, A. F., Barazzone, G. C., Nascimento, A. L. T. O., Lopes, A. P. Y.2026-04-17📊 epidemiology

Prospective study of blood-based biomarkers and 20-year risk of clinically diagnosed Alzheimer's disease

This prospective study demonstrates that blood-based biomarkers, particularly the novel brain-derived p-tau 217, can effectively identify individuals at risk of developing Alzheimer's disease up to two decades before clinical diagnosis.

Littlejohns, T., Liu, W., Maronga, C., Tong, T. Y., Amin, N., Breeur, M., Collister, J., Parsaeian, M., Papier, K., Piazza, P., Rockett, G., Smith-Byrne, K., Travis, R., van Duijn, C., Hunter, D.2026-04-17📊 epidemiology

Mapping the Dynamic Interplay of Mental Health and Weight Across Childhood: Data-Driven Explorations Using Causal Discovery

Using causal discovery on a large Danish birth cohort, this study reveals that while childhood weight strongly influences future weight status, there is no direct causal link between weight and mental health, suggesting their observed association is likely driven by confounding factors rather than a direct causal mechanism.

Larsen, T. E., Lorca, M. H., Ekstrom, C. T., Vinding, R., Bonnelykke, K., Strandberg-Larsen, K., Petersen, A. H.2026-04-17📊 epidemiology

Plasma proteomics of APOE genotype: age-specific analyses in UK population-based cohorts

This study analyzes UK Biobank data to demonstrate that APOE ε4 and ε2 genotypes exert broad, often age-dependent effects on the circulating plasma proteome across diverse ancestries, revealing early biomarkers of neurodegeneration decades before typical Alzheimer's disease diagnosis.

Packer, A., Khatun, T., Groves, J. W., Wyss-Coray, T., Schott, J., Proitsi, P., Anderson, E. L., Williams, D. M.2026-04-17📊 epidemiology

Culture-independent identification and serotyping of Streptococcus pneumoniae by targeted metagenomics in pleural fluid samples

This study demonstrates that targeted metagenomics (tNGS) using capture-based enrichment enables highly sensitive, culture-independent detection and serotyping of *Streptococcus pneumoniae* in pleural fluid samples, significantly outperforming standard molecular methods and enhancing surveillance of invasive pneumococcal disease.

Smith, S. A. M., Rockett, R. J., Oftadeh, S., Tam, K. K.-G., Payne, M., Golubchik, T., Sintchenko, V.2026-04-16📊 epidemiology

A natural experiment in Kenya reveals durable immunosuppressive effects of early childhood malaria: a longitudinal cohort study

This longitudinal study in Kenya demonstrates that early childhood exposure to malaria causes durable, long-term suppression of antibody responses to unrelated pathogens and vaccines, even years after the initial infection.

Safari, M. S., Makori, T. O., Gicheru, E. T., Mburu, M. W., Nyawa, O. K., Shee, F. M., Nyagwange, J., Kagucia, E. W., Ndungu, F. M., Chege, T., Tuju, J. O., Sande, C. J.2026-04-15📊 epidemiology