Bordetella pertussis is the causative agent of pertussis or whooping cough, an acute and highly contagious respiratory infection that can have serious and fatal complications such as pneumonia, encephalopathy, and seizures, especially for newborns. The disease is endemic not only in the European Union (EU)/European Economic Area (EEA) but also globally. Larger outbreaks are anticipated every three to five years, even in countries where vaccination rates are high. Despite the high pertussis vaccination coverage in developed countries and a low rate of pertussis incidence for many years, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, the incidence of pertussis has been on the rise again, with outbreaks in some places, which is referred to as “re-emergence of pertussis”. The aim of this review is to underscore the critical importance of achieving high vaccination coverage, particularly among pregnant women, to safeguard vulnerable neonates from pertussis during their early months, before they are eligible for vaccination. This aligns with the need to address diagnostic challenges, mitigate disease severity, and strengthen public health strategies in light of the ongoing 2024 Bordetella pertussis resurgence.

Congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) infection is the most prevalent congenital infection, affecting approximately 0.5–2% of newborns, and is the leading non-genetic cause of sensorineural hearing loss and neurological impairment. The most severe outcome occurs following primary maternal infection during the first trimester of pregnancy, and up to 40–50% of affected fetuses sustain permanent damage. Diagnosis relies on early prenatal screening through maternal serum testing, optimally performed in the first trimester, followed by confirmatory amniocentesis after 17 weeks’ gestation. Prenatal imaging with ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) plays a critical role in the identification of fetal brain abnormalities. Prevention strategies emphasize hygiene measures aimed at reducing maternal exposure to bodily fluids of young children, particularly prior to conception and during early pregnancy. Despite progress in vaccine development, currently available ones demonstrate modest efficacy. This review presents a comprehensive summary of congenital CMV infection, addressing its epidemiology, pathogenesis, diagnostic approaches, clinical presentation, and preventive measures, with a focus on recent advances in vaccine research.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the leading cause of lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) and hospitalization in infants and young children worldwide, with the highest disease burden occurring in otherwise healthy term infants during the first 6 months of life. The recent introduction of long-acting monoclonal antibodies and maternal RSV vaccination has fundamentally changed preventive strategies against severe RSV disease. Evidence from randomized clinical trials and large real-world studies consistently demonstrates that a single dose of Nirsevimab provides season-long protection against RSV-associated LRTI and reduces hospitalization rate across diverse infant populations, while maintaining an excellent safety profile. Emerging data also support its effectiveness in routine clinical practice, although important uncertainties remain regarding long-term epidemiological effects, viral evolution, resistance, comparative effectiveness with maternal immunization, and optimal implementation across different healthcare settings. Current evidence supports Nirsevimab as a major advance in infant RSV prevention. However, continued surveillance, comparative effectiveness studies, and equitable global implementation will be essential to maximize its long-term public health impact. This narrative review summarizes current evidence on Nirsevimab, with emphasis on its clinical efficacy, safety, real-world effectiveness, resistance, implementation challenges, cost-effectiveness, and its role alongside maternal RSV vaccination.

Despite continuously evolving medical advances, CVD risk in Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) remains paradoxically high to date. Carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) is a widely used surrogate marker for atherosclerosis. However, issues related to operator-dependent assessment, availability and cost of carotid ultrasound are barriers to its wide implementation as an aid to cardiovascular risk assessment in RA. We aimed to develop a computational artificial intelligence (AI) model for cIMT prediction in RA. The recently proposed DERGA algorithm (Data Ensemble Refinement Greedy Algorithm) was employed in a database of datasets from 101 patients with RA, utilizing information on a wide range of clinical and laboratory variables, classical cardiovascular risk factors, disease-related parameters, and vascular assessments obtained with nailfold videocapillaroscopy (NVC). A total of 13,917,800 models were designed and trained. Among the four evaluated regression metaheuristic algorithms, the best predictive performance was achieved by the DERGA–Extra Trees model. The optimal model utilized only 8 of the 52 available input variables, while maintaining excellent predictive accuracy. Eventually, the 8 most important parameters predicting cIMT, listed from the most influential to the least influential, were white blood count, age, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, capillary density, systolic blood pressure, microhemorrhages, inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone, and methotrexate. A very strong positive linear correlation was observed between predicted and actual (measured) cIMT values ( R = 0.9843), supporting the high predictive capability of the proposed computational intelligence model. Pending external validation in larger cohorts, the findings of the present study should be considered preliminary. Nevertheless, they provide further evidencesupporting the potential utility of AI applications for the assessment of subclinical vascular involvement in RA. While the role of NVC as an indicator of cardiovascular health is beginning to unfold, these findings underscore its promise as an adjunctive modality to facilitate more effective CVD risk stratification in RA.