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Christopher Kefyalew Hannah Blyth Alene Moore MBBS (Hons) DCH FRACP FRCPA PhD BSc, MPH, PhD OAM BSc (Hons) GradDipClinEpi PhD Centre Head, Wesfarmers
The FluBub Study will investigate whether giving the flu vaccine much earlier than the six months currently recommended by the National Immunisation Program will protect babies at the greatest risk of a severe influenza infection when they are most vulnerable.
New research investigating the devastating impact of the 2017 flu season by PAEDS-FluCAN, a national collaboration observing influenza in children, confirmed it was time to take action after thousands of children were hospitalised with the virus last year.
Vaccination in pregnancy is the best strategy to reduce complications from influenza or pertussis infection in infants who are too young to be protected directly from vaccination. Pregnant women are also at risk of influenza complications preventable through antenatal vaccination. Both vaccines are funded under the National Immunisation Program for pregnant women in Australia, but coverage is not routinely reported nationally.
Researchers from the Wesfarmers Centre of Vaccines and Infectious Diseases at The Kids Research Institute Australia have shared their expertise with the community in Cockburn, covering topics ranging from respiratory disease in babies to recurring ear infections in kids.
Up to 40,000 influenza cases could be prevented in Western Australia this winter if more primary school-aged children were vaccinated, researchers at The Kids Research Institute Australia have found.
People are being urged to ensure they've had their vaccination with the 'flu season expected to hit in Western Australia within weeks.
The Australian and New Zealand Paediatric Infectious Diseases (ANZPID) Group of the Australasian Society for Infectious Diseases (ASID) calls for urgent consideration of the needs and voices of children in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and in planning for future pandemics.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a significant cause of respiratory infections in young children. Since 2021, RSV has been a notifiable disease in Australia. However, current surveillance systems focus on hospitalised RSV, with limited surveillance at a community level through primary care clinics. This approach only captures RSV requiring hospitalisation. Less severe illnesses, while not captured, may have significant social and economic impacts including the associated cost of care and absenteeism. The aim of this study is to establish an understanding of the broader burden of RSV in young children in a community setting.
Understanding patterns of bacterial carriage and otitis media (OM) microbiology is crucial for assessing vaccine impact and informing policy. The microbiology of OM can vary with geography, time, and interventions like pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs). We evaluated the microbiology of nasopharyngeal and middle ear effusions in children living in Western Australia, 11 years following the introduction of PCV13.