Featured
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| Open AccessDietary circadian rhythms and cardiovascular disease risk in the prospective NutriNet-Santé cohort
The relation between daily meal and fasting timing with cardiovascular disease incidence remains unclear. Here, authors show that a later daily meal timing is associated with increased cardiovascular disease risk, especially in women. This study suggests that adopting earlier daily eating patterns may be beneficial for cardiovascular prevention.
- Anna Palomar-Cros
- , Valentina A. Andreeva
- & Bernard Srour
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Article
| Open AccessDeep learning-based phenotyping reclassifies combined hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinoma
Combined hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinomas (cHCC-CCA) are challenging to diagnose, as they exhibit features of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICCA). Here, the authors use deep learning to re-classify cHCC-CCA tumours into HCC or ICCA based on histopathology images.
- Julien Calderaro
- , Narmin Ghaffari Laleh
- & Jakob Nikolas Kather
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Article
| Open AccessEffects of accelerometer-based sedentary time and physical activity on DEXA-measured fat mass in 6059 children
Childhood obesity remains a global epidemic. Here, using objective measurements, the authors show that sedentary time increased from 6 h/day in childhood to 9 h/day in young adulthood, and was cumulatively associated with increased total and trunk fat mass. Both light or moderate-to-vigorous physical activity similarly partly reversed risk.
- Andrew O. Agbaje
- , Wei Perng
- & Tomi-Pekka Tuomainen
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Article
| Open AccessA deep unrolled neural network for real-time MRI-guided brain intervention
Real-time MRI provides accurate navigation and targeting for neurological interventions. Here, the authors propose a deep unrolled neural network for MRI reconstruction that enables real-time monitoring of remote-controlled brain interventions and can be integrated into diagnostic scanners.
- Zhao He
- , Ya-Nan Zhu
- & Yuan Feng
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Article
| Open AccessTemperature-related death burden of various neurodegenerative diseases under climate warming: a nationwide modelling study
Examining non-optimal temperatures’ influence on neurodegenerative diseases amid climate warming is vital for public health. Here, the authors project a notable net increase of death burden from neurodegenerative diseases after the mid-21st century.
- Peng Yin
- , Ya Gao
- & Haidong Kan
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Article
| Open AccessPhylogeny and molecular evolution of the first local monkeypox virus cluster in Guangdong Province, China
The first known local mpox outbreak in Guangdong Province, China occurred in June 2023. Here, the authors perform phylogenetic and molecular evolution analysis of ten mpox virus genome sequences from this outbreak, and place them in the context of other samples detected in surrounding regions.
- Jianhai Yu
- , Xin Zhang
- & Baisheng Li
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Article
| Open AccessHigh-throughput target trial emulation for Alzheimer’s disease drug repurposing with real-world data
Target trial emulation (TTE) simulates randomized controlled trials using real world data (RWD). Here, authors show the effectiveness of different TTE strategies to identify drug candidates that could be potentially repurposed to Alzheimer’s disease using two large scale RWD warehouses.
- Chengxi Zang
- , Hao Zhang
- & Fei Wang
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Article
| Open AccessInteractions between climate change, urban infrastructure and mobility are driving dengue emergence in Vietnam
The geographic distribution of dengue has been expanding in recent decades, and Vietnam is one of the most severely affected countries. In this study, the authors use Bayesian hierarchical modelling to investigate the socio-environmental and climatic drivers of dengue incidence in Vietnam and how they vary across the country.
- Rory Gibb
- , Felipe J. Colón-González
- & Rachel Lowe
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Comment
| Open AccessTime for global health policy and research leaders to prioritize endometriosis
Endometriosis is an incurable, under-diagnosed, systemic inflammatory disease affecting millions world-wide. Common symptoms include life-impacting pain, gastrointestinal/urinary symptoms, excessive fatigue, and infertility. Global public health policies are urgently needed to promote awareness, implement multidisciplinary care, and fund research for aetiology, biomarker discovery, and effective therapies for symptoms associated with endometriosis.
- Linda C. Giudice
- , Andrew W. Horne
- & Stacey A. Missmer
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Article
| Open AccessEstimating the potential impact and diagnostic requirements for SARS-CoV-2 test-and-treat programs
Antivirals are now available for treating COVID-19 but must be used early in the course of infection to be effective. Here, the authors use mathematical modelling to assess the potential public health impacts of antiviral use considering different levels of testing and country sociodemographic characteristics.
- Alvin X. Han
- , Emma Hannay
- & Colin A. Russell
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Article
| Open AccessTrue prevalence of long-COVID in a nationwide, population cohort study
Determining the prevalence of Long COVID is challenging because many symptoms attributed to the syndrome could have other causes. Here, the authors estimate the prevalence of Long COVID in Scotland by comparing rates of symptoms reported by people with and without history of SARS-CoV-2 infection.
- Claire E. Hastie
- , David J. Lowe
- & Jill P. Pell
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Article
| Open AccessGenome-wide association analysis of left ventricular imaging-derived phenotypes identifies 72 risk loci and yields genetic insights into hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
Changes of left ventricular structure are used to predict morbidity and mortality in cardiovascular diseases. Here the authors conducted a study using advanced deep learning technology to analyze left ventricular regional wall thickness (LVRWT) in a large population, identifying 72 significant genetic loci linked to LVRWT traits.
- Caibo Ning
- , Linyun Fan
- & Xiaoping Miao
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Article
| Open AccessTransformEHR: transformer-based encoder-decoder generative model to enhance prediction of disease outcomes using electronic health records
Using AI to predict disease can improve interventions slow down or prevent disease. Here, the authors show that generative AI models built on the framework of Transformer, the model that also empowers ChatGPT, can achieve state-of-the-art performance on disease predictions based on longitudinal electronic records.
- Zhichao Yang
- , Avijit Mitra
- & Hong Yu
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Article
| Open AccessData-driven grading of acute graft-versus-host disease
Acute GVHD severity grading is based on target organ assessments. Here, the authors show that data-driven grading can identify 12 distinct grades with specific aGVHD phenotypes, which are associated with clinical outcomes, and that their method outperformed conventional gradings.
- Evren Bayraktar
- , Theresa Graf
- & Amin T. Turki
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Article
| Open AccessEpidemiology, mortality, and health service use of local-level multimorbidity patterns in South Spain
Multimorbidity—the occurrence of chronic diseases together—represents a major challenge for healthcare systems. Here, the authors characterise multimorbidity patterns in a large dataset of patients residing in southern Spain and show the unequal distribution of multimorbidity patterns along different socioeconomic areas at the local level.
- Javier Alvarez-Galvez
- , Esther Ortega-Martin
- & Jesus Carretero-Bravo
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Article
| Open AccessA self-stabilized and water-responsive deliverable coenzyme-based polymer binary elastomer adhesive patch for treating oral ulcer
The therapeutic benefits of biomaterials-based treatments for oral ulcer have been limited by the materials’ poor adhesion and short-time retention in oral cavity. Here, the authors report a polymer binary elastomer adhesive patch that allows water-responsive sustainable delivery of bioactive small molecules and durable adhesion to oral mucosal wounds to achieve efficient therapy of oral ulcer.
- Chunyan Cui
- , Li Mei
- & Wenguang Liu
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Article
| Open AccessAssessing the value of integrating national longitudinal shopping data into respiratory disease forecasting models
Novel indicators of infectious disease prevalence could improve real-time surveillance and support healthcare planning. Here, the authors show that sales data for non-prescription medications from a UK high street retailer can improve the accuracy of models forecasting mortality from respiratory infections.
- Elizabeth Dolan
- , James Goulding
- & Laila J. Tata
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Article
| Open AccessEvaluation of the US COVID-19 Scenario Modeling Hub for informing pandemic response under uncertainty
The US COVID-19 Scenario Modeling Hub produced medium to long term projections based on different epidemic scenarios. In this study, the authors evaluate 14 rounds of projections by comparing them to the epidemic trajectories that occurred, and discuss lessons learned for future similar projects.
- Emily Howerton
- , Lucie Contamin
- & Justin Lessler
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| Open AccessThe burden of post-acute COVID-19 symptoms in a multinational network cohort analysis
Post-acute COVID-19 condition is difficult to quantify because it includes a range of symptoms that may have other causes. In this study, the authors use primary care data from England and Catalonia, Spain, to estimate the incidence of the condition and identify symptoms that occur more frequently following infection than in uninfected controls.
- Kristin Kostka
- , Elena Roel
- & Annika M. Jödicke
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Article
| Open AccessThe metabolic, virulence and antimicrobial resistance profiles of colonising Streptococcus pneumoniae shift after PCV13 introduction in urban Malawi
Pneumococcal vaccination has been shown to promote emergence of non-vaccine S. pneumoniae serotypes. Here, the authors use data from Malawi to investigate whether vaccine introduction also results in changes in metabolic, virulence, and antimicrobial resistance profiles of circulating strains.
- Uri Obolski
- , Todd D. Swarthout
- & Robert S. Heyderman
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Article
| Open AccessCircadian disturbances and frailty risk in older adults
The relationship between circadian function and frailty is not well understood. Here, the authors show that disturbances in circadian rest-activity rhythms were associated with an elevated frailty risk and faster progress of frailty in older adults.
- Ruixue Cai
- , Lei Gao
- & Peng Li
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Article
| Open AccessImpact of vaccinations, boosters and lockdowns on COVID-19 waves in French Polynesia
In this study, the authors develop a mathematical modelling framework to estimate the impacts of non-pharmaceutical interventions and vaccination on COVID-19 incidence. The model accounts for changes in SARS-CoV-2 variant and population immunity, and here they use it to investigate epidemic dynamics in French Polynesia.
- Lloyd A. C. Chapman
- , Maite Aubry
- & Adam J. Kucharski
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Article
| Open AccessMalaria surveillance reveals parasite relatedness, signatures of selection, and correlates of transmission across Senegal
Senegal has initiated a national sentinel surveillance program for malaria parasite genetics. Here, the authors report data from the first year of the program and use it to investigate local malaria incidence, patterns of transmission, and genetic loci under selection.
- Stephen F. Schaffner
- , Aida Badiane
- & Sarah K. Volkman
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Article
| Open AccessAutomated temporalis muscle quantification and growth charts for children through adulthood
Temporalis muscle thickness is a promising marker of lean muscle mass but has had limited utility due to its unknown normal growth trajectory and lack of standardized measurement. Here, the authors develop an automated deep learning pipeline to accurately measure temporalis muscle thickness from routine brain magnetic resonance imaging.
- Anna Zapaishchykova
- , Kevin X. Liu
- & Benjamin H. Kann
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Article
| Open AccessFetal biometry and amniotic fluid volume assessment end-to-end automation using Deep Learning
Fetal biometry and amniotic fluid volume are essential but strenuous measurements in fetal ultrasound screening. Here, the authors show that deep learning models can automate these measurements with high accuracy, using a large and diverse dataset of Moroccan fetal ultrasound images.
- Saad Slimani
- , Salaheddine Hounka
- & El Houssine Bouyakhf
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Comment
| Open AccessThe counterintuitive implications of superspreading diseases
The superspreading that characterized SARS and now COVID-19 can be rapidly quantified; however, its implications for outbreak control were never well understood. Recent studies point to its profound impact on outbreak dynamics and prospects for effective control of a future Disease X. These insights necessitate research into the mechanisms, impact and different modes of superspreading more widely.
- Bjarke Frost Nielsen
- , Kim Sneppen
- & Lone Simonsen
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Comment
| Open AccessLessons for cross-species viral transmission surveillance from highly pathogenic avian influenza Korean cat shelter outbreaks
In this Comment, the authors describe recent outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza in cat shelters in Seoul, South Korea. They discuss potential routes of transmission and describe implications for surveillance of spillover infections in animals in non-agricultural settings.
- Younjung Kim
- , Guillaume Fournié
- & Pierre Nouvellet
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Article
| Open AccessCumulative effect of PM2.5 components is larger than the effect of PM2.5 mass on child health in India
Health impact of air pollution is estimated using PM2.5 mass as exposure metric. Here authors show that the impacts on child health is underestimated in India using this metric relative to the cumulative impact of the various PM2.5 components.
- Ekta Chaudhary
- , Franciosalgeo George
- & Unnati Mehta
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Article
| Open AccessRNA N6-methyladenosine modification-based biomarkers for absorbed ionizing radiation dose estimation
Radiation dosimetry are critical for the medical management of individuals exposed to ionizing radiation (IR). Here, authors show that the RNA m6A levels of Ncoa4, Ate1 and Fgf22 genes in peripheral blood cells could serve as dosimetry of IR exposure.
- Hongxia Chen
- , Xi Zhao
- & Gangqiao Zhou
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Article
| Open AccessHierarchical AI enables global interpretation of culture plates in the era of digital microbiology
DeepColony is a multi-level AI solution for the interpretation of bacterial culturing images in clinical microbiology laboratory automations. Here, the authors show it allows presumptive identification and quantitation of relevant pathogens at both colony- and plate-level.
- Alberto Signoroni
- , Alessandro Ferrari
- & Karissa Culbreath
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| Open AccessEffectiveness of the second COVID-19 booster against Omicron: a large-scale cohort study in Chile
This study assesses the effectiveness of a second COVID-19 mRNA booster vaccine against severe disease using data from Chile. The authors find that the effectiveness of the second mRNA booster was high with a range of different background vaccination schemes, but there was evidence of waning over time.
- Alejandro Jara
- , Cristobal Cuadrado
- & Rafael Araos
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| Open AccessUsing drivers and transmission pathways to identify SARS-like coronavirus spillover risk hotspots
Identification of areas with risk factors for spillover of viruses from animals to humans could assist with early detection of emerging infectious diseases. In this study, the authors characterise potential risks for spillover of SARS-like viruses from bats to humans and identify geographical regions in which multiple risk factors cluster together.
- Renata L. Muylaert
- , David A. Wilkinson
- & David T. S. Hayman
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Article
| Open AccessMortality risks from a spectrum of causes associated with sand and dust storms in China
Sand and dust storms pose considerable health risks worldwide. Here, the authors conduct a nationwide multicenter time-series study to examine sand and dust storm-associated mortality risks.
- Can Zhang
- , Meilin Yan
- & Tiantian Li
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Article
| Open AccessReconstructing disease dynamics for mechanistic insights and clinical benefit
Understanding disease progression dynamics is critical for diagnostics and treatment, but capturing dynamics is difficult. Here, the authors present a method for modelling disease progression from high dimensional molecular data that enables patient stratification and high-risk disease state identification, showcased in bladder cancer.
- Amit Frishberg
- , Neta Milman
- & Shai S. Shen-Orr
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Article
| Open AccessLong-term health impacts of COVID-19 among 242,712 adults in England
The duration of symptomatic COVID-19 and its impacts on health and quality of life are not well understood. In this study, the authors report results from a survey of ~275,000 adults in England and find that persistent COVID-19 is relatively rare but is associated with poorer mental health and health-related quality of life.
- Christina J. Atchison
- , Bethan Davies
- & Paul Elliott
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| Open AccessIndividual level analysis of digital proximity tracing for COVID-19 in Belgium highlights major bottlenecks
Digital proximity tracing apps were widely used during the COVID-19 pandemic but have not been thoroughly evaluated. Here, the authors use data from students in Leuven, Belgium and estimate that apps notified only ~4% exposed contacts, had a 1–2 day delay for notification, and identified fewer infected contacts than manual contact tracing.
- Caspar Geenen
- , Joren Raymenants
- & Emmanuel André
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Article
| Open AccessIntelligent surgical workflow recognition for endoscopic submucosal dissection with real-time animal study
AI-enabled cognitive assistance for therapeutic procedures has rarely been pre-clinically validated. Here, the authors propose an intelligent surgical workflow recognition suit AI-Endo for endoscopic submucosal dissection, extensively validated on external and animal trial datasets.
- Jianfeng Cao
- , Hon-Chi Yip
- & Qi Dou
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Article
| Open AccessAutomatic correction of performance drift under acquisition shift in medical image classification
Automatic correction of performance drift caused by changes in image acquisition is key for safe AI deployment. Here, the authors present a solution that restores the expected clinical performance of image classification systems in breast screening and histopathology.
- Mélanie Roschewitz
- , Galvin Khara
- & Ben Glocker
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Article
| Open AccessEpidemiology of Plasmodium malariae and Plasmodium ovale spp. in Kinshasa Province, Democratic Republic of Congo
Non-falciparum malaria may cause a significant disease burden in highly endemic regions, but epidemiological data is limited. In this study, the authors estimate the incidence and prevalence of P. malariae, P. ovale spp., in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo and compare to P. falciparum, which known to be common in the region.
- Rachel Sendor
- , Kristin Banek
- & Jonathan B. Parr
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Article
| Open AccessMetabolic fingerprinting on retinal pigment epithelium thickness for individualized risk stratification of type 2 diabetes mellitus
The retina’s role in type 2 diabetes is not well understood. Here, the authors show that retinal pigment epithelium thickness, with its metabolic fingerprints, might offer improved predictability and clinical utility beyond traditional indicators.
- Shaopeng Yang
- , Zhuoting Zhu
- & Wei Wang
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Article
| Open AccessA randomized controlled trial testing a virtual program for Asian American women breast cancer survivors
Virtual support methods have been shown to be an effective aid in cancer survivorship. Here, the authors created a culturally tailored information and support system for Asian American breast cancer patients and showed these resources improved quality of life.
- Eun-Ok Im
- , Wonshik Chee
- & Jun J. Mao
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Article
| Open AccessSARS-CoV-2 genomic surveillance in wastewater as a model for monitoring evolution of endemic viruses
SARS-CoV-2 wastewater surveillance could provide an important means of monitoring population trends as clinical testing decreases. Here, the authors demonstrate the use of wastewater to track variants of concern through a sentinel wastewater surveillance system in South Africa.
- Mukhlid Yousif
- , Said Rachida
- & Kerrigan McCarthy
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Article
| Open AccessThe Personalized Nutrition Study (POINTS): evaluation of a genetically informed weight loss approach, a Randomized Clinical Trial
Genotype patterns may modify diet effects on weight loss, with greater weight loss on genotype-concordant diets. Here, the authors show that with the current ability to genotype participants as fat- or carbohydrate-responders, evidence does not support greater weight loss on genotype-concordant diets.
- Christoph Höchsmann
- , Shengping Yang
- & Corby K. Martin
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Article
| Open AccessImproving model fairness in image-based computer-aided diagnosis
Deep learning models can reflect and amplify human bias, potentially resulting inaccurate missed diagnoses. Here, the authors show that by leveraging the marginal pairwise equal opportunity, their model reduces bias in medical image classification by over 35% compared to baseline models, with minimal impact on AUC values.
- Mingquan Lin
- , Tianhao Li
- & Yifan Peng
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Article
| Open AccessViral kinetics of sequential SARS-CoV-2 infections
In this study, the authors compare the viral kinetics of first and second SARS-CoV-2 infections using data from an occupational surveillance scheme in the National Basketball League. They find that second infections tend to have a faster clearance time, and that clearance times in first and second infections were positively correlated.
- Stephen M. Kissler
- , James A. Hay
- & Yonatan H. Grad
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Article
| Open AccessCost-effectiveness requirements for implementing artificial intelligence technology in the Women’s UK Breast Cancer Screening service
AI technology has the potential to substitute a human reader to aid services struggling to recruit staff or meet patient demand. Here, the authors show that the technology is a viable and potentially cost-effective strategy for use in the NHS.
- Armando Vargas-Palacios
- , Nisha Sharma
- & Gurdeep S. Sagoo
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Review Article
| Open AccessThe promise of data science for health research in Africa
In this Review article, the authors discuss emerging efforts to build ethical governance frameworks for data science health research in Africa and the opportunities to advance these through investments by African governments and institutions, international funding organizations and collaborations for research and capacity development.
- Clement A. Adebamowo
- , Shawneequa Callier
- & Sally N. Adebamowo
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Article
| Open AccessDisentangling age, gender, and racial/ethnic disparities in multiple myeloma burden: a modeling study
Multiple myeloma (MM) is a haematological malignancy that is preceded by monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS). Here, the authors use a mechanistic model fitted to surveillance data from the United States to investigate whether variation in MM is best explained by incidence of MGUS or rate of progression to MM.
- John H. Huber
- , Mengmeng Ji
- & Su-Hsin Chang
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Article
| Open AccessmRNA-1273 bivalent (original and Omicron) COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness against COVID-19 outcomes in the United States
Bivalent mRNA COVID-19 vaccines have been developed to provide broader protection against SARS-CoV-2 variants. In this cohort study based on electronic health records from the United States, the authors estimate the effectiveness of bivalent, compared to monovalent, vaccines and no vaccination against a range of COVID-19-related outcomes.
- Hung Fu Tseng
- , Bradley K. Ackerson
- & Lei Qian