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Epidemiology of COVID-19 infection in young children under five years: A systematic review and meta-analysisEmerging evidence suggests young children are at greater risk of COVID-19 infection than initially predicted. However, a comprehensive understanding of epidemiology of COVID-19 infection in young children under five years, the most at-risk age-group for respiratory infections, remain unclear. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of epidemiological and clinical characteristics of COVID-19 infection in children under five years.
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Epidemiology and seasonality of human parainfluenza serotypes 1-3 in Australian childrenParainfluenza viruses are significant contributors to childhood respiratory illness worldwide, although detailed epidemiological studies are lacking. Few recent Australian studies have investigated serotype-specific PIV epidemiology, and there is a paucity of southern hemisphere PIV reports. We report age-stratified PIV hospitalisation rates and a mathematical model of PIV seasonality and dynamics in Western Australia (WA).
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OPTIMUM study protocol: an adaptive randomised controlled trial of a mixed whole-cell/acellular pertussis vaccine scheduleCombination vaccines containing whole-cell pertussis antigens were phased out from the Australian national immunisation programme between 1997 and 1999 and replaced by the less reactogenic acellular pertussis (aP) antigens. In a large case-control study of Australian children born during the transition period, those with allergist diagnosed IgE-mediated food allergy were less likely to have received whole-cell vaccine in early infancy than matched population controls (OR: 0.77 (95% CI, 0.62 to 0.95)). We hypothesise that a single dose of whole-cell vaccine in early infancy is protective against IgE-mediated food allergy.
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Financial Interventions to Increase Vaccine CoverageRecent vaccine mandates in Australia, as in other high income settings, have sought to change the behavior of parents, including those who would otherwise access nonmedical exemptions. Since 2014, Australian state governments have introduced and progressively tightened policies restricting the access of unvaccinated children to early education and child care.
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Predictors of hospital readmission in infants less than 3 months oldTo examine rates and predictors of 7-day readmission in infants hospitalised before 3 months of age with infectious and non-infectious conditions. A retrospective population-based data-linkage study of 121 854 infants from a 5-year metropolitan birth cohort (2008-2012). Cox proportional hazard models were used to examine associations between infant and maternal factors with 7-day readmission.
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Do rapid diagnostic methods improve antibiotic prescribing in paediatric bacteraemia?Rapid blood culture pathogen identification facilitated by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionisation time-of-flight and GeneXpert has the potential to improve antibiotic prescribing. This study investigates the impact of these rapid diagnostics on the timeliness of effective and optimal antibiotic prescribing in paediatric patients with bacteraemia.
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The incidence of sore throat and group A streptococcal pharyngitis in children at high risk of developing acute rheumatic fever: A systematic review and meta-analysisGroup A streptococcal (GAS) pharyngitis has traditionally been considered the sole precursor of acute rheumatic fever (ARF). Evidence from Australia, however, suggests that GAS skin infections may contribute to the pathogenesis of ARF.
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Outcomes and endpoints reported in studies of pulmonary exacerbations in people with cystic fibrosis: A systematic reviewThere is no consensus about which outcomes should be evaluated in studies of pulmonary exacerbations in people with cystic fibrosis (CF). Outcomes used for evaluation should be meaningful; that is, they should capture how people feel, function or survive and be acknowledged as important to people with CF, or should be reliable surrogates of those outcomes. We aimed to summarise the outcomes and corresponding endpoints which have been reported in studies of pulmonary exacerbations, and to identify those which are most likely to be meaningful.
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A model of population dynamics with complex household structure and mobility: implications for transmission and control of communicable diseasesHouseholds are known to be high-risk locations for the transmission of communicable diseases. Numerous modelling studies have demonstrated the important role of households in sustaining both communicable diseases outbreaks and endemic transmission, and as the focus for control efforts. However, these studies typically assume that households are associated with a single dwelling and have static membership.
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Djaalinj Waakinj (listening talking): Rationale, cultural governance, methods, population characteristics–an urban Aboriginal birth cohort study of otitis mediaThe majority of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (hereafter referred to as “Aboriginal”) people live in urban centres. Otitis media (OM) occurs at a younger age, prevalence is higher and hearing loss and other serious complications are more common in Aboriginal than non-Aboriginal children. Despite this, data on the burden of OM and hearing loss in urban Aboriginal children are limited.