Pediatrics ·
Infant dies of measles in New York as U.S. cases pass 5,000; skipping newborn vitamin K tied to 47% higher bleeding risk; LMA cuts airway events
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An unvaccinated infant in Lewis County died of measles, New York's first measles death in 30 years, as U.S. cases for 2026 reached 5,182. Infants not given vitamin K at birth had a 47% higher bleeding risk in a JAMA cohort of 5,240,780. Children exposed to mRNA COVID-19 vaccine in pregnancy had equivalent developmental scores, and a BMJ trial found fewer respiratory adverse events with a laryngeal mask airway.
THE DETAILS
- Public health Nov 2, 2026New York health officials said an infant from Lewis County died after contracting measles, the state's first measles death in 30 years. State Health Commissioner Dr. James V. McDonald said the child was unvaccinated and called the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine "the best protection." As of Nov. 5, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) counted 5,182 confirmed U.S. cases in 2026, 96% outbreak-associated, with 43 new outbreaks and four deaths.
- Research Nov 5, 2026Infants who did not receive vitamin K at birth had a 47% higher risk of bleeding in their first 6 months (adjusted risk ratio 1.47, 95% CI 1.43 to 1.51) in a retrospective JAMA cohort of 5,240,780 infants born at 35 to 43 weeks' gestation, published Nov. 5. Nonreceipt more than doubled, from 3.1% in 2017 to 6.8% in 2025, in the Epic Cosmos electronic health record data. Bleeding events occurred in 288.0 versus 185.9 per 10,000 nonrecipients and recipients, an adjusted number needed to harm of 114.Sources: JAMA, Contemporary Pediatrics
- Research Nov 2, 2026A cohort study at 14 centers of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development's Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units Network matched 217 pairs of children whose mothers did or did not receive a SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine in pregnancy. Ages and Stages Questionnaire scores, the primary outcome, were equivalent (255 versus 260; adjusted median difference -3.4, 90% CI -9.8 to 3.0), according to the study published Nov. 2 in JAMA Pediatrics. The authors said the findings support continued recommendations for vaccination during pregnancy.Sources: JAMA Pediatrics, PubMed
- Research Nov 4, 2026In a randomized trial at four tertiary hospitals in China, 400 children ages 2 to 6 undergoing adenotonsillectomy received ventilation with a laryngeal mask airway or an endotracheal tube. Perioperative respiratory adverse events, the primary outcome, occurred in 22.5% with the laryngeal mask versus 57.5% with the tube (absolute risk difference -35.0 percentage points, 95% CI -43.5 to -25.7; P < .001), according to the BMJ report published Nov. 4. Neither group had serious adverse events, and the airways were placed by experienced anesthesiologists.
- Policy Nov 2, 2026NHS England said Nov. 2 that the National Paediatric Early Warning System, already used in inpatient departments across England, is being extended to emergency departments. Staff score vital signs, and a concern raised by a parent or carer triggers immediate escalation, according to ITV News.Source: ITV News
- Research Nov 6, 2026In a retrospective cohort of 758 children hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia at four hospitals, escalation of care occurred in 3% of those given antibiotics within four hours of emergency department arrival versus 2% of those given them later (odds ratio 1.46, 95% CI 0.57 to 3.73), a difference that was not statistically significant. The authors said more time to observe children without antibiotics does not change outcomes, according to the Journal of Hospital Medicine report published Nov. 6.Sources: Journal of Hospital Medicine, PubMed
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