📊 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.

Why malaria persists despite decline: disentangling environmental, socioeconomic, and demographic drivers in the Brazilian Amazon

This study reveals that despite an overall decline in malaria cases in the Brazilian Legal Amazon, persistent transmission is primarily driven by the synergistic effects of deforestation and extreme poverty rather than macroclimatic factors or primate abundance, necessitating a One Health approach that integrates environmental protection and social development to achieve elimination goals.

Souza-Silva, G. A. d., Andrade, T. C., de Cerqueira, L. V.-B. M. P.2026-04-02📊 epidemiology

Predicting COVID-19 incidence from seroprevalence and population-based cohort data using interpretable machine learning with differential privacy analysis

This study demonstrates that integrating interpretable machine learning with differential privacy on aggregated seroprevalence and cohort data from Germany enables accurate prediction of local COVID-19 incidence and the identification of key behavioral and immunological transmission drivers, offering a valuable complement to routine surveillance for public health decision-making.

Krepel, J., Binkyte, R., Kerkouche, R., Harries, M., Klett-Tammen, C. J., Fritz, M., Kesselheim, S., Kuehn, M., Bazarova, A., Lange, B.2026-04-02📊 epidemiology

Development and Validation of a Mobile Laboratory Workflows for Wastewater and Environmental Surveillance with Application in Sub Saharan Africa

This study develops and validates an optimized mobile laboratory workflow integrating Oxford Nanopore Technologies, multiplex metabarcoding, and qPCR to enable rapid, on-site wastewater and environmental surveillance for pathogen detection and antimicrobial resistance profiling in resource-limited Sub-Saharan African settings.

Bagi, A., Tiwari, A., Mbachu, C. C., Shea, D., Tran, T. T., Tahita, C., Lompo, P., Mkama, P., Lyimo, E., Baraka, V., Le Tressoler, A., Krolicka, A.2026-04-02📊 epidemiology

Fine-grained spatial data-driven ensemble modeling for predicting Sylvatic Yellow Fever environmental suitability in Brazil

This study presents a fine-grained, machine-learning ensemble model utilizing high-resolution environmental covariates to predict Sylvatic Yellow Fever suitability across Brazil, identifying Southern Brazil as the highest-risk region and highlighting Land use and cover as the primary influencing factor while noting significant data gaps in the North.

Augusto, D. A., Abdalla, L., Krempser, E., de Oliveira Passos, P. H., Garkauskas Ramos, D., Pecego Martins Romano, A., Chame, M.2026-04-01📊 epidemiology

Spatial patterns and determinants of Anemia in women of reproductive age in Zambia (2018-2024): A multilevel ordinal regression approach

This study analyzes spatial patterns and determinants of anemia severity among 19,362 Zambian women of reproductive age from 2018 to 2024, revealing that HIV status, pregnancy, and rural residency significantly increase risk while union status and financial access are protective, alongside a non-random geographic distribution with expanding hotspots in the Western, North-Western, and Luapula regions.

Muchinga, J., Moonga, G., Mukumbuta, N., Musonda, P.2026-04-01📊 epidemiology

The impact of the two-child benefit cap on parental mental, general, and financial health in the UK

Using triangulated causal inference methods on UK Household Longitudinal Survey data, this study concludes that the 2017 two-child benefit cap adversely affected the mental, general, and financial health of parents with three or more children, with disproportionately negative impacts observed among male, lower-income, and ethnic minority parents.

Paulino, A., Dykxhoorn, J., Evans-Lacko, S., Patalay, P.2026-04-01📊 epidemiology

Ethnic Differences in the Timing and Incidence of Childhood Health Conditions: Evidence from the Born in Bradford Cohort

Using data from the Born in Bradford cohort, this study reveals that ethnic disparities in childhood health are condition-specific and age-dependent, with Pakistani British children experiencing higher risks of atopic conditions and obesity in early childhood, while White British children show higher incidence of mental health and neurodevelopmental disorders during adolescence.

Santorelli, G., Cheung, R. W., Bhopal, S., Wright, J.2026-04-01📊 epidemiology

Who would take part in a pandemic preparedness cohort study? The role of vaccine-related affective polarisation: cross-sectional survey

This cross-sectional survey in Switzerland reveals that while socioeconomic factors like education and income strongly predict willingness to join a pandemic preparedness cohort study, affective polarisation regarding COVID-19 vaccination significantly modifies this willingness, with polarised supporters being more likely to participate and both polarised and non-polarised opponents being less likely to do so.

Ipekci, A. M., Hodel, E. M., Filsinger, M., Wegmuller, S., Schuller, S., Freitag, M., Frahsa, A., Wandeler, G., Low, N.2026-03-31📊 epidemiology

To comprehensively evaluate the evolution of global childhood and adolescent asthma (ages 0-19) disease burden from 1990-2023, explore spatiotemporal patterns, influencing factors, health equity, and predict future trends.

This study utilizes Global Burden of Disease data to comprehensively analyze the spatiotemporal evolution, demographic disparities, and health equity of childhood and adolescent asthma from 1990 to 2023, revealing a global trend of increasing prevalence and incidence alongside declining mortality and disability rates, while projecting future challenges such as rising female-specific mortality and DALYs over the next 15 years.

yin, h., He, S., Wu, Z., Tan, W., Du, F., Yang, C., Yu, H.2026-03-31📊 epidemiology