Medical emergencies in the air may be more common—and more serious—than most travelers realize. With nearly five billion people flying each year, a new study led by Duke Health researchers analyzed more than 77,000 in-flight medical events reported to the world’s busiest airline medical support center. The findings show that while most incidents are minor, thousands of passengers required hospital care after landing, and in some cases, emergencies proved fatal or forced aircraft diversions.

Dr. Alexandre Rotta, from the Department of Pediatrics at the Duke University School of Medicine, joined Jeff Hamlin to discuss the study.