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Research

Transmissible vaccines have the potential to revolutionize how zoonotic pathogens are controlled within wildlife reservoirs. A key challenge that must be overcome is identifying viral vectors that can rapidly spread immunity through a reservoir population.

Research

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the most common cause of acute lower respiratory infection in young children. We previously estimated that in 2015, 33·1 million episodes of RSV-associated acute lower respiratory infection occurred in children aged 0-60 months, resulting in a total of 118 200 deaths worldwide.

Research

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and influenza are important causes of disease in children and adults. In Australia, information on the burden of RSV in adults is particularly limited.

Research

The Bacille-Calmette–Guerin (BCG) vaccination remains the primary strategy to prevent severe disseminated TB in young children, particularly in high TB-burden countries such as Ethiopia. Accurate knowledge of vaccination coverage in small geographical areas is critically important to developing targeted immunization campaigns. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the spatiotemporal distributions and ecological level determinants of BCG vaccination coverage in Ethiopia.

Research

Benzathine penicillin G has been used as monthly deep intramuscular (IM) injections since the 1950s for secondary prevention of acute rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease (RHD). Injection frequency and pain are major programmatic barriers for adherence, prompting calls for development of better long-acting penicillin preparations to prevent RHD.

Research

Insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) are one of the most widespread and impactful malaria interventions in Africa, yet a spatially-resolved time series of ITN coverage has never been published. Using data from multiple sources, we generate high-resolution maps of ITN access, use, and nets-per-capita annually from 2000 to 2020 across the 40 highest-burden African countries.

Research

There remains a general misconception that the immune status of the fetus and neonate is immature or insufficient. However, emerging research in immune ontogeny prompts reconsideration of this orthodoxy, reframing this period instead as one of unique opportunity. Vaccine responses (qualitative and quantitative) vary between individuals, and across demographic cohorts. Elements of baseline immune status and function predict vaccine response - some of these factors are well described, others remain a subject of ongoing research, especially with the rapidly expanding field of 'omics' research, enabled by development of highly granular immune profiling techniques and increasing computational capacity.

Research

This systematic review aimed to analyse the performance of the Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response strategy in Sub-Saharan Africa and how its implementation has embraced advancement in information technology, big data analytics techniques and wealth of data sources.

Research

Providing a safe and effective coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) vaccination program is required to mitigate against the current and future negative impacts on the health and wellbeing of all Australians from COVID‐19. An effective vaccination program is a key element required to facilitate economic recovery, safe movement throughout and beyond Australia and a return to the quality of life previously experienced.

Research

To identify barriers to influenza vaccination of children hospitalised for acute respiratory illness in Australia. A total of 595 parents of children hospitalised with acute respiratory illness across five tertiary hospitals in 2019 participated in an online survey. Multivariate logistic regression identified factors most strongly associated with influenza vaccination barriers.