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Estimation of the force of infection and infectious period of skin sores in remote Australian communities using interval-censored dataPrevalence of impetigo (skin sores) remains high in remote Australian Aboriginal communities, Fiji, and other areas of socio-economic disadvantage. Skin sore infections, driven primarily in these settings by Group A Streptococcus (GAS) contribute substantially to the disease burden in these areas. Despite this, estimates for the force of infection, infectious period and basic reproductive ratio-all necessary for the construction of dynamic transmission models-have not been obtained.
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Molecular diagnosis of scabies using a novel probe-based polymerase chain reaction assay targeting high-copy number repetitive sequences in the sarcoptes scabiei genomeThe suboptimal sensitivity and specificity of available diagnostic methods for scabies hampers clinical management, trials of new therapies and epidemiologic studies. Additionally, parasitologic diagnosis by microscopic examination of skin scrapings requires sample collection with a sharp scalpel blade, causing discomfort to patients and difficulty in children. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based diagnostic assays, combined with non-invasive sampling methods, represent an attractive approach.
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OPTIMUM study protocol: an adaptive randomised controlled trial of a mixed whole-cell/acellular pertussis vaccine scheduleCombination vaccines containing whole-cell pertussis antigens were phased out from the Australian national immunisation programme between 1997 and 1999 and replaced by the less reactogenic acellular pertussis (aP) antigens. In a large case-control study of Australian children born during the transition period, those with allergist diagnosed IgE-mediated food allergy were less likely to have received whole-cell vaccine in early infancy than matched population controls (OR: 0.77 (95% CI, 0.62 to 0.95)). We hypothesise that a single dose of whole-cell vaccine in early infancy is protective against IgE-mediated food allergy.
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COVID-19 Response and Lessons Learned on Dengue Control in BhutanCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an acute respiratory illness caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). SARS-CoV-2 initially was identified from a cluster of patients admitted with ‘pneumonia of unknown etiology’ in late December 2019 to hospitals in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China.
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Costs of primary healthcare presentations and hospital admissions for scabies and related skin infections in Fiji, 2018–2019Scabies and related bacterial skin and soft tissue infections are highly prevalent in many tropical, low- and middle-income settings. These skin conditions contribute to higher healthcare costs and burdens on healthcare systems.
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B cell epitope mapping: The journey to better vaccines and therapeutic antibodiesB-cell epitope mapping is an approach that can identify and characterise specific antigen binding sites of B-cell receptors and secreted antibodies. The ability to determine the antigenic clusters of amino acids bound by B-cell clones provides unprecedented detail that will aid in developing novel and effective vaccine targets and therapeutic antibodies for various diseases.
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Modeling the potential health impact of prospective Strep A vaccinesThe World Health Organization published the preferred product characteristics for a Group A Streptococcus (Strep A) vaccine in 2018. Based on these parameters for the age of vaccination, vaccine efficacy, duration of protection from vaccine-derived immunity, and vaccination coverage, we developed a static cohort model to estimate the projected health impact of Strep A vaccination at the global, regional, and national levels and by country-income category.
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Health service utilisation for acute respiratory infections in infants graduating from the neonatal intensive care unit: a population-based cohort studyDespite advances in neonatal intensive care, babies admitted to Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU) suffer from adverse outcomes. We aim to describe the longer-term respiratory infectious morbidity of infants discharged from NICU using state-wide population-based linked data in Western Australia.
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Impact of previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2 and of S-Trimer (SCB-2019) COVID-19 vaccination on the risk of reinfection: a randomised, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, phase 2 and 3 trialWe previously reported the efficacy of the adjuvanted-protein COVID-19 vaccine candidate S-Trimer (SCB-2019) in adults who showed no evidence of previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2. In this study, we aimed to investigate the extent of protection afforded by previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2 on subsequent COVID-19 infection, as well as the efficacy, safety, and reactogenicity of SCB-2019 in participants who were enrolled in the Study.
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Examining prescribing, timeliness and data recording of immunisations onto a national electronic immunisation register for inpatients at a tertiary paediatric hospitalThe aim of this study was to investigate the quality and adherence of inpatient immunisation prescribing, as well as timeliness and recording of immunisations onto the national immunisation register, within a tertiary paediatric hospital setting. We conducted an observational, retrospective review of inpatient immunisations at Perth Children’s Hospital from July 2018 to February 2019.