With the recent resurgence of global measles outbreaks, it is crucial to understand measles transmission dynamics to guide timely and effective public health responses and parameterize infectious disease models for accurate outbreak projections. This systematic review aims to provide a comprehensive resource of measles transmission-related epidemiological parameters. A search was conducted from inception to 14 May 2024. English and French primary studies of transmission-related epidemiological parameters were included, and standard systematic review methodology was followed. Evidence was synthesized using random-effects meta-analyses and descriptive plots. Subgroup analyses by World Health Organization (WHO) region, population, decade, and quality of reporting were conducted to explore heterogeneity. Between 1910 and 2024, 1 209 estimates across 32 transmission-related epidemiological parameters from 612 studies were reported. Measles was characterized by a pooled incubation period (13.5 days, 95%CI 12.6–14.4; I2 = 95.9%), serial interval (12.4 days, 95%CI 11.5–13.4; I2 = 97.6%), symptom onset to hospitalization (4.8 days, 95%CI 3.7–5.8, I2 = 99.7%), and basic reproduction number median 11.5 (range of 0–57). This work is part of a global epidemic preparedness and response project to establish an accessible living Global Repository of Epidemiological Parameters aimed at reducing duplicative efforts in identifying and summarizing epidemiological parameters.

Social contact surveys, measuring who contacts whom, are widely used for epidemic intelligence and public health decision-making. Despite their widespread use, sample size calculations are not performed. We conducted a review of social contact surveys (2008–2025) to characterize current practice. We characterized the impact of survey size on epidemic metrics using two social contact surveys, the UK Social Contact Survey and POLYMOD (Europe), and two methods. For each dataset and approach, we generated repeated subsamples and calculated the resulting reproduction numbers, characterized their distributions, and measured uncertainty. We identified 107 unique social contact surveys from 57 studies. Sample sizes ranged from 30 to more than 10 000 participants, with a median of 1 438. One quarter of surveys contained fewer than 1 000 participants. Our analysis supports recruiting at least 1 000 participants for general-population social contact surveys used for epidemic modelling. Increasing sample size to 2 000 participants provides worthwhile gains in the precision of epidemic estimates, particularly for analyses using finer age stratification or individual-level approaches. Beyond approximately 3 000 participants, additional improvements in precision were small for the epidemic metrics analysed. This provides a practical balance between precision and participant burden.

Compliance with epidemic prevention norms has been found to be higher in developing regions than in developed regions; however, the nature and underlying mechanisms remain unclear. We propose that socioeconomic development of environments changes the adaptive benefits of fundamental social motives, especially disease avoidance and familial motives, which shape variations in compliance during pandemics. To examine the effects of these motives on the relationship between socioeconomic environments and compliance, we conducted three studies measuring environmental socioeconomic development with the Human Development Index (HDI). Study 1 (with two datasets: N = 43,244, 53 countries; N = 94,657, 71 countries) revealed a stable negative correlation between country-level HDI and compliance, even after controlling disease severity, government responses, and individualism. Studies 2 (an analysis of social media text data; N = 22,588, 31 provinces) and 3 (a large-sample survey; N = 6,122, 31 cities) replicated this correlation in China at the provincial and city levels, and identified disease avoidance and familial motives as mediators. These findings provide evidence for how socioeconomic environments shape compliance during pandemics, highlight the importance of familial motives alongside disease avoidance, and offer insights into tailoring public health strategies across diverse environments.

Non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic were known to create an immunity debt. This study aimed to quantify the immunity debt for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), adenovirus, group A Streptococcus (GAS), and influenza in Japan between 2014 and 2024. We conducted a retrospective observational study using national surveillance data and electronic health records in 23 clinics. We conducted an interrupted time series analysis using a quasi-Poisson regression model to estimate the counterfactual incidence that would have occurred in the absence of NPIs. The number of RSV cases declined by 84% in the 2020–2021 season and increased by 39% in the 2021–2022 season, primarily due to an increase in cases among 2-year-old children (94%). Adenovirus, GAS, and influenza were suppressed during the 2020–2022 season by 58–99%. Adenovirus cases increased by 195% in 2023, with a 458% increase among children aged 5–9 years. GAS increased by 36% in 2024, with a 96% increase among 10- to 14-year-olds. Influenza increased by 158% in 2023, with a 299% increase among 10- to 14-year-olds. Surveillance data and 23 clinics’ data showed similar trends. The study suggests that the intensity and timing of the immunity debt differed by pathogen.

Government guidance published during the COVID-19 pandemic implied that employers owe a duty to protect their employees from the risk of infectious disease in the workplace. That employers owe a duty in respect of occupational disease – including occupational infectious disease – is well established. However, there is no authority to support the proposition that the employer’s duty extends to include infectious diseases in general circulation in the community (e.g. COVID-19, flu, measles). The Government’s guidance was therefore based on a misunderstanding of employers’ liability. This article argues that infectious diseases in general circulation are, and should remain, beyond the scope of the employer’s duty in English law.

Cervical cancer, primarily caused by human papillomavirus (HPV), is the most common cancer in women in sub-Saharan Africa and the most common cause of cancer fatalities among women on the continent. While both prevention and early detection are possible through HPV vaccination and cervical cancer screening, health system capacity is inadequate for screening and there are pervasive negative attitudes and beliefs. A major, modifiable but understudied barrier is cancer stigma, which underlies suboptimal vaccination efforts as well as cancer screening. Adhering to the PRISMA, ScR guidelines, we conducted a scoping review exploring HPV and cervical cancer stigma in Africa. We included studies that described stigma in relation to HPV or cervical cancer in Africa or among people of African descent. Forty-three studies described HPV and cervical cancer stigma in a dozen countries in sub-Saharan Africa and none in North Africa. Internalized, enacted and anticipated forms of stigma occurred at the individual, family and community levels. The four main themes that emerged include (1) how lack of knowledge and false perception hinders screening and vaccine uptake; (2) stigma in the context of practical barriers to care; (3) acceptability of education and interventions to reduce stigma and (4) stigma as a contributor to psychological distress and treatment outcomes. Only two studies described interventions focused on eliminating stigma through promoting cervical cancer and HPV-related knowledge, targeting misinformation and incorporating patient navigation. Addressing stigma is essential, as it is a key barrier to HPV vaccination, cervical cancer screening and timely treatment. We call for future studies to develop culturally informed interventions to reduce stigma and improve cervical cancer outcomes across all regions in Africa.

The presence of children in eighteenth-century English voluntary hospitals is an area of increasing interest and attention. The Northampton Infirmary admission records detail inpatient and outpatient ages from 1744 to 1804, allowing for longitudinal investigations of children in the institution. The most common distempers affecting children were surgical infections, infectious diseases, and skin diseases; fifty-six per cent of the child patients were male and 43.3 per cent were female. Nearly seventy-five per cent of children left the hospital ‘cured’. This article outlines the Northampton Infirmary Eighteenth Century Child Admission Database, and demonstrates how the patterning of distempers within and among children provides insight into the health journeys of eighteenth-century children through the lens of their bodies, their parents, and their institutional recommenders.

Both sex (biological) and gender (socio-cultural) are increasingly recognized as important factors in disease risks and outcomes, including parasitic infections and especially those of the genital tract. Many funding agencies now require these dimensions be incorporated into research proposals, though little guidance is given regarding how, leading to confusion among those who do not specialize in this area. In this commentary, I review instances of the use of the word ‘gender’ in the archives of Parasitology (174 articles) to assess how parasitologists are progressing in the incorporation of this dimension and identify what can be done to improve efforts. Use of the term has increased since 1990, reflecting an enthusiasm among parasitologists for including this dimension to their work. Examination of articles which use this term reveals that correct and thorough incorporation of the gender dimension has also increased, but that these articles only account for 8.0% of all articles using the term, demonstrating widespread persistent confusion around terminology regarding sex and gender and how to best account for gender in parasitological research. Parasitologists studying animals should only refer to sex and should incorporate sex into their research design and report whether there are differences in baseline or response between sexes. Parasitologists studying humans should incorporate sex, but then also consider whether any observed differences are due to biological factors like sex hormones and immunity or gendered social variables like behavioural norms and healthcare access. These considerations will further our understanding of host–parasite interactions and improve health outcomes.

In March 2024, the East Midlands Health Protection Team was notified of a case of invasive Group A Streptococcus (iGAS) infection in an elderly care home resident. Twenty-two days later, another case in a resident from the same floor of the care home was notified. In accordance with national guidelines, an outbreak was declared, and a multidisciplinary outbreak control team (OCT) was urgently convened. Screening for GAS throat carriage was undertaken for staff and residents, excluding those receiving end-of-life care. All isolates were strain typed and characterised. Infection prevention and control (IPC) visits were undertaken to provide ongoing support. Screening identified five residents and five staff members positive for GAS. Antibiotic prophylaxis was provided to all staff throughout the setting (n = 74) and all residents on the affected floor (n = 35). Three individuals were positive on repeat screening. All staff and residents screened negative after 4 months and the two clinical cases recovered. Eleven of the 12 GAS isolates were identified as emm 3.93. This outbreak highlighted the importance of rapid screening, possible only through the deployment of a dedicated team, and rescreening post-decolonising treatment, as a means to contain such outbreaks.

Serogroup epidemiology of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) is constantly evolving, varying by time and location. Surveillance reports have indicated a rise in meningococcal serogroup Y (MenY) in some regions in recent years. This systematic literature review explores the evolving epidemiology of MenY IMD globally based on review of recent articles and national surveillance reports published between 1 January 2010 and 25 March 2021. Generally, MenY incidence was low (<0.2/100,000) across all ages in most countries. The reported incidence was more frequent among infants, adolescents, and those aged ≥65 years. More than 10% of all IMD cases were MenY in some locations and time periods. Implementation of vaccination evolved over time as the rise in MenY IMD percentage occurred. Cases decreased in countries with quadrivalent vaccine programs (e.g., United Kingdom, the Netherlands, United States, and Australia), whereas the MenY burden increased and made up a large proportion of cases in areas without vaccine programs. Continuous monitoring of epidemiologic changes of IMD is essential to establish MenY burden and for implementation of prevention strategies.

Studies on climate variables and food pathogens are either pathogen- or region-specific, necessitating a consolidated view on the subject. This study aims to systematically review all studies on the association of ambient temperature and precipitation on the incidence of gastroenteritis and bacteraemia from Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter, Vibrio, and Listeria species. PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, Scopus, and Web of Science databases were searched up to 9 March 2023. We screened 3,204 articles for eligibility and included 83 studies in the review and three in the meta-analysis. Except for one study on Campylobacter, all showed a positive association between temperature and Salmonella, Shigella, Vibrio sp., and Campylobacter gastroenteritis. Similarly, most of the included studies showed that precipitation was positively associated with these conditions. These positive associations were found regardless of the effect measure chosen. The pooled incidence rate ratio (IRR) for the three studies that included bacteraemia from Campylobacter and Salmonella sp. was 1.05 (95 per cent confidence interval (95% CI): 1.03, 1.06) for extreme temperature and 1.09 (95% CI: 0.99, 1.19) for extreme precipitation. If current climate trends continue, our findings suggest these pathogens would increase patient morbidity, the need for hospitalization, and prolonged antibiotic courses.