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Research
The Impact of Pneumococcal Vaccination on Bacterial and Viral Pneumonia in Western Australian Children: Record Linkage Cohort Study of 469589 Births, 1996-2012We assessed the impact of PCV on all-cause and pathogen-specific pneumonia hospitalizations in Western Australian (WA) children aged 16 years.
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Infant Whole-Cell Versus Acellular Pertussis Vaccination in 1997 to 1999 and Risk of Childhood Hospitalization for Food-Induced Anaphylaxis: Linked Administrative Databases Cohort StudyEvidence suggests that children who had received an initial priming dose of whole-cell pertussis (wP) vaccine, rather than acellular pertussis (aP) vaccine, had a lower risk of developing IgE-mediated food allergy, the most common cause of anaphylaxis-related hospital presentations of childhood.
News & Events
The Kids infectious diseases researcher named a WA Young Tall PoppyA The Kids researcher focused on ensuring kids are protected from infectious diseases will be named among WA’s most outstanding young scientists at the upcoming 2021 Young Tall Poppy Science Awards.
Research
Preparing for prevention: Assessing the community awareness of RSV and other childhood infectionsRespiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) is one of the most common reasons babies are admitted to hospital – with Aboriginal and preterm infants at greatest risk.
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Development of a pharmaceutical science systematic review process using a semi-automated machine learning tool: Intravenous drug compatibility in the neonatal intensive care settingOur objective was to establish and test a machine learning-based screening process that would be applicable to systematic reviews in pharmaceutical sciences. We used the SPIDER (Sample, Phenomenon of Interest, Design, Evaluation, Research type) model, a broad search strategy, and a machine learning tool (Research Screener) to identify relevant references related to y-site compatibility of 95 intravenous drugs used in neonatal intensive care settings.
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Nudging towards COVID-19 and influenza vaccination uptake in medically at-risk children: EPIC study protocol of randomised controlled trials in Australian paediatric outpatient clinicsChildren with chronic medical diseases are at an unacceptable risk of hospitalisation and death from influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infections. Over the past two decades, behavioural scientists have learnt how to design non-coercive 'nudge' interventions to encourage positive health behaviours. Our study aims to evaluate the impact of multicomponent nudge interventions on the uptake of COVID-19 and influenza vaccines in medically at-risk children.
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Characterization of invasive Group B Streptococcus isolates from Western Australian infants, 2004-2020Invasive Group B Streptococcus remains a leading cause of infant morbidity and mortality. Intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis has been implemented in many countries with a reduction in early-onset disease, but an effective vaccine may further reduce the disease burden. Candidate vaccines targeting capsular polysaccharides and surface proteins are now in clinical trials.
People
Associate Professor Lea-Ann KirkhamCo-Head, Bacterial Respiratory Infectious Disease Group; Microbiology Lead, Wesfarmers Centre of Vaccines & Infectious Diseases
Research
Clinical predictors of hypoxic pneumonia in children from the Eastern Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea: secondary analysis of two prospective observational studiesPneumonia is the leading cause of death in young children globally and is prevalent in the Papua New Guinea highlands. We investigated clinical predictors of hypoxic pneumonia to inform local treatment guidelines in this resource-limited setting.