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Research

Early parent-child interactions have a critical impact on the developmental outcomes of the child. It has been reported that infants with a family history of autism and their parents may engage in different patterns of behaviours during interaction compared to those without a family history of autism. This study investigated the association of parent-child interactions with child developmental outcomes of those with typical and elevated likelihood of autism.

Research

Handedness has been studied for association with language-related disorders because of its link with language hemispheric dominance. No clear pattern has emerged, possibly because of small samples, publication bias, and heterogeneous criteria across studies.

Research

Cerebral palsy (CP) is the most common physical disability of childhood worldwide. Historically the diagnosis was made between 12 and 24 months, meaning data about effective early interventions to improve motor outcomes are scant. In high-income countries, two in three children will walk. This evaluator-blinded randomised controlled trial will investigate the efficacy of an early and sustained Goals-Activity-Motor Enrichment approach to improve motor and cognitive skills in infants with suspected or confirmed CP.

Research

This study examined how families with young children access and use different types of blue spaces and the health and development benefits, and potential negative effects.

Research

Lung-function impairment underlies chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and predicts mortality. In the largest multi-ancestry genome-wide association meta-analysis of lung function to date, comprising 580,869 participants, we identified 1,020 independent association signals implicating 559 genes supported by ≥2 criteria from a systematic variant-to-gene mapping framework. These genes were enriched in 29 pathways. Individual variants showed heterogeneity across ancestries, age and smoking groups, and collectively as a genetic risk score showed strong association with COPD across ancestry groups.

Research

Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices have demonstrated efficacy in adults and more recently in youths and older adults with type 1 diabetes. In adults with type 1 diabetes, the use of real-time CGM compared with intermittently scanned CGM was associated with improved glycemic control, but there are limited data available for youths. 

Research

Within the first 4 months of the Western Australian COVID-19 immunisation programme, 49 suspected anaphylaxis cases were reported to the vaccine safety surveillance system. Twelve reports met Brighton Collaboration case definition, corresponding to rates of 15.9 and 17.7 per million doses of Vaxzevria and Comirnaty administered respectively.

Research

Using over 50 thousand time-use diaries from two cohorts of children, we document significant gender differences in time allocation in the first 16 years in life. Relative to males, females spend more time on personal care, chores and educational activities and less time on physical and media related activities. These gender gaps in time allocation appear at very young ages and widen overtime.

Research

Australian families increasingly rely on eating foods from outside the home, which in-creases intake of energy‐dense nutrient‐poor foods. ‘Kids’ Menus’ are designed to appeal to families and typically lack healthy options. However, the nutritional quality of Kids’ Menus from cafes and full‐service restaurants (as opposed to fast‐food outlets) has not been investigated in Australia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the nutritional quality of Kids’ Menus in restaurants and cafés in metropolitan Perth, Western Australia.

Research

Globally, Indigenous people have a greater incidence and earlier onset of diabetes than the general population and have higher documented rates of emotional distress and mental illness. This systematic review will provide a synthesis and critical appraisal of the evidence focused on the social and emotional well-being of Indigenous peoples living with diabetes, including prevalence, impact, moderators, and the efficacy of interventions.