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Physical and mental health of mothers caring for a child with Rett syndromeThis study compared the behavior profile of cases in the Australian Rett Syndrome Database (ARSD) with those in a British study using the Rett Syndrome...
Research
Effectiveness of current digital cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia interventions for adolescents with insomnia symptoms: A systematic review and meta-analysisSleep problems occur in up to 20%-45% of adolescents. This systematic review and meta-analysis examined the effectiveness of digital sleep interventions, based on cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia, for adolescents with insomnia symptoms. The objective was to synthesise and quantify, through meta-analyses, changes in sleep following completion of a digital sleep-based intervention.
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Participation and quality of life among Australian children with developmental coordination disorderChildren with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) experience difficulty in the acquisition and performance of movement skills, threatening participation and quality of life. Environmental influences on participation and quality of life were investigated in children with DCD and their neurotypical peers.
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Novel approaches to measuring cognition in individuals with severe to profound functional impairment: A pilot study in SCN2A-related disorderValid clinical outcome assessments with the ability to capture meaningful aspects of neurodevelopment for individuals with neurogenetic conditions associated with profound functional impairments are lacking, yet critical for clinical care and clinical trial readiness.
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‘I have to jump like a kangaroo … I have to slither like a snake’. A qualitative evaluation of elder-led art workshops in the child protection sectorIndigenous peoples globally have incurred significant harm resulting from colonisation and the forced removal of children from their families, culture, communities and Country. Over the last two decades in Australia, there have been calls for significant reform and there has been a raft of policy changes in child protection services. However the problems are intractable, and the numbers of Indigenous children being removed from their families continues to rise.

Developmental and epileptic encephalopathy (DEE) conditions are rare, and most have a genetic cause.
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Safety, tolerability, and effect of a single aural dose of Dornase alfa at the time of ventilation tube surgery for otitis media: A Phase 1b double randomized control trialOne third of children require repeat ventilation tube insertion (VTI) for otitis media. Disease recurrence is associated with persistent middle ear bacterial biofilms. With demonstration that Dornase alfa (a DNase) disrupts middle ear effusion biofilms ex vivo, we identified potential for this as an anti-biofilm therapy to prevent repeat VTI. First, safety and tolerability needed to be measured.
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Stability and change in self-reported risk and resilience factors associated with mental health of siblings of individuals with and without neurodevelopmental conditions over 15 monthsSiblings of individuals with neurodevelopmental conditions (NDCs) are a minority population at higher genetic and environmental risk of poorer neurocognitive and psychosocial outcomes compared to siblings of individuals without NDCs.
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Ovulation induction and subfertile untreated conception groups offer improved options for interpreting risks associated with ARTTo identify and characterise appropriate comparison groups for population studies of health outcomes in ART-conceived births: ovulation induction (OI), subfertile untreated and fertile natural conceptions. Our secondary objective was to examine whether known risks of pregnancy complications and adverse birth outcomes in ART births are elevated in comparison with subfertile (untreated and OI) conception groups.
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The NDIS at ten years: designing an equitable scheme for the next decadeJenny Downs BApplSci (physio) MSc PhD Head, Child Disability 08 6319 1763 Jenny.Downs@thekids.org.au Head, Child Disability Areas of research