A study in the journal JAMA Dermatology describes how 12 infants from India with sudden-onset, rapidly progressing diffuse hyperpigmentation all over the body were found to have chikungunya fever. Also known as "Chik sign," the brown-black pigmentation is commonly found at the tip of the nose but could also be found in other areas and can be used as a means of differentiate chikungunya from other arbovirus infections.

Researchers found no significant difference in overall cognitive scores of babies without microcephaly whose mothers tested either positive or negative for the Zika virus based on test results from 65 infants, 29 of whom had mothers exposed to Zika virus. The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

The implementation of a quality-improvement initiative involving continued parent and nurse education on hepatitis B vaccinations at Richmond University Medical Center in New York raised the rate of infant vaccinations from 52% to 70% and the rate of newborn babies vaccinated during the first 12 hours from 19% to 43%, researchers reported at an American Academy of Pediatrics meeting. Another study presented at the meeting showed that the rate of HBV vaccinations among newborns in another hospital rose from nearly 70% to 90% about six months after the launch of a QI project, which included increasing awareness and addressing vaccine hesitancy.

Unvaccinated children who recovered from a measles infection had an 11% to 73% decline in immune system antibodies, but no antibody reductions were observed among infants following measles, mumps and rubella immunization, researchers reported in the journal Science Immunology. Youths had reductions in B cells that combat new infections 40 days after developing measles.

A physician was sued after an electronic health record system malfunction affected electronic prescribing and caused a prescription to be given to the wrong patient. The case underscores the need for physicians using electronic prescribing systems to maintain all safeguards customarily used when writing a prescription.

UK researchers developed a wearable brain magnetoencephalography technology with electromagnetic coils allowing freedom of movement during scans to better measure children's brain activity while doing normal activities. The MEG scanner, described in Nature Communications, could be used to gauge cognitive activity across a patient's life span and prompt more studies on autism, epilepsy and other pediatric mental health conditions, researchers said.

A federal judge struck down a Trump administration rule that would allow health care workers, including nurses, to decline to perform medical procedures that violate their personal or religious beliefs. The decision involved three separate lawsuits, including one from state attorneys general in blue states and Chicago officials.

Health care jobs led a list of the 10 best career opportunities for military service members who move into civilian life each year, according to a survey from Navy Federal Credit Union and Hire Heroes USA. The most popular career paths included registered nurse, hospital operations and logistics, research and administration.