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The ARC Centre of Excellence for Children and Families over the Life Course (Life Course Centre or LCC)The Life Course Centre is a national centre funded by the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence Scheme and hosted through the University of Queensland with collaborating nodes at the University of Western Australia, Sydney University and University of Melbourne.
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Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis: Early Irritability as a Transdiagnostic Neurodevelopmental Vulnerability to Later Mental Health ProblemsIrritability is a transdiagnostic indicator of child and adolescent internalizing and externalizing problems that is measurable from early life. The objective of this systematic review was to determine the strength of the association between irritability measured from 0 to 5 years and later internalizing and externalizing problems, to identify mediators and moderators of these relationships, and to explore whether the strength of the association varied according to irritability operationalization.
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Gene editing and cardiac disease modelling for the interpretation of genetic variants of uncertain significance in congenital heart diseaseGenomic sequencing in congenital heart disease (CHD) patients often discovers novel genetic variants, which are classified as variants of uncertain significance (VUS). Functional analysis of each VUS is required in specialised laboratories, to determine whether the VUS is disease causative or not, leading to lengthy diagnostic delays.
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Preterm birth and exercise capacity: what do we currently know?The long-term cardiopulmonary outcomes following preterm birth during the surfactant era remain unclear. Respiratory symptoms, particularly exertional symptoms, are common in preterm children. Therefore, cardiopulmonary exercise testing may provide insights into the pathophysiology driving exertional respiratory symptoms in those born preterm. This review aims to outline the current knowledge of cardiopulmonary exercise testing in the assessment of children born preterm in the surfactant era.
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Skin-Microbiome Assembly in Preterm Infants during the First Three Weeks of Life and Impact of Topical Coconut Oil ApplicationThe structure and function of infant skin is not fully developed until 34 weeks of gestation, and this immaturity is associated with risk of late-onset sepsis (LOS). Topical coconut oil improves preterm-infant skin integrity and may reduce LOS. However, data on early-life skin-microbiome succession and potential effects of emollient skin care in preterm infants are scarce.
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Determining the true incidence of seasonal respiratory syncytial virus-confirmed hospitalizations in preterm and term infants in Western AustraliaRespiratory syncytial virus contributes to significant global infant morbidity and mortality. We applied a previously developed statistical prediction model incorporating pre-pandemic RSV testing data and hospital admission data to estimate infant RSV-hospitalizations by birth month and prematurity, focused on infants aged <1 year.
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Neighborhood Places for Preschool Children's Physical Activity: A Mixed-Methods Study Using Global Positioning System, Geographic Information Systems, and Accelerometry DataThis study adds to the current literature by using a novel device-based method to explore where preschool children are physically active outside of home and childcare settings. This study combined accelerometry with geospatial data to explore the influence of the environment on preschool children's physical activity by objectively identifying the locations where preschool children engage in moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) within and outside of their neighborhood.
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Infant and Pre-birth Involvement With Child Protection Across AustraliaInfants (<1 year old) are the age group in Australia with the highest rate of involvement with child protection. Many jurisdictions across Australia and internationally are implementing policies focused on prenatal planning and targeted support.This study investigates Australian trends in prenatal and infant child protection notifications, substantiations and out-of-home care; and the extent of over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander infants.
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Interventions to Improve Child Physical Activity in the Early Childhood Education and Care Setting: An Umbrella ReviewEarly childhood education and care (ECEC) services are a key setting to support improvements in the physical activity of young children. This umbrella review gathered and synthesised systematic review evidence of the effectiveness of interventions in the ECEC setting on the physical activity levels of children aged 0–6.
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Trajectories of interparental conflict and children's emotional-behavioural functioning at 10-11 years: an Australian population-based studyInterparental conflict (IPC) has the potential to adversely affect children's social, emotional, and behavioural functioning. The overall objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between both the severity and chronicity of IPC across early and middle childhood and children's emotional-behavioural functioning at 10-11 years. Specifically, we aimed to: (1) identify distinct trajectories of IPC spanning 10-11 years since birth of the study child as reported by mothers, and (2) examine the emotional-behavioural functioning of children exposed to the identified IPC trajectories.