Investigators: Hannah Moore, Parveen Fathima, Tom Snelling
Enteric (gut) infections are a major cause of illness in children and young adults. Aboriginal children suffer from more gut infections compared with non-Aboriginal children. In addition to dehydration, severe gut infections can give rise to bloodstream infections (BSI) and other nutrition/growth related health problems.
By bringing together the birth, hospitalisation, and laboratory records of children across Western Australia over the last 10 years, we will investigate which pathogens (bacteria, viruses or parasites) are responsible for enteric infection related health care presentations in children, who are most at risk and what factors (such as age, region of residence, infant low birth weight, maternal age etc.) predicts the severity of illness. We will assess the overall impact of the rotavirus vaccination program introduced for children in Western Australia in 2007. This will help us to better target further prevention and management strategies for these infections.