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The Kids Research Institute Australia research ensures kids are protected against whooping coughResearch by The Kids Research Institute Australia will soon ensure young children are better protected against whooping cough.
News & Events
Childhood influenza vaccination rates improves with better accessMore children across Australia are being vaccinated against the flu since funding was expanded and access widened under the National Immunisation Program
Latest news & events at the Wesfarmers Centre of Vaccines & Infectious Diseases.
Research
Immunogenicity and Safety of a 2 + 1 DTPa Priming Schedule in Australian Infants and the Impact of Maternally Derived Antibodies on Pertussis Antibody Responses up to 4 Years of AgeWe assessed the impact of maternally derived pertussis antibodies on infant responses to a 2 + 1 vaccine schedule (6 weeks, 12 weeks, and 12 months). Infants with baseline antibodies showed lower IgG responses following the primary vaccination series, but this did not impair booster responses at 4 years of age.
Research
Boosting the influenza vaccine schedule in children with cancer: a prospective open-label studyCurrent immunization guidelines recommend one dose of influenza vaccine for children aged ≥9 years and two doses for younger or vaccine-naïve children. However, children receiving chemotherapy have an attenuated immune response. We performed a prospective open-label study in children undergoing treatment for cancer at Perth Children's Hospital, Western Australia, to examine the safety and efficacy of a boosted influenza schedule.
Research
Mapping Bacillus Calmette-Guérin vaccination coverage in Africa from 1990 to 2022: a novel spatiotemporal modelling studyBacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) protects children from severe tuberculosis and remains the only licensed vaccine for tuberculosis. Subnational estimates of BCG coverage are essential for identifying underserved populations across Africa. This study aimed to map BCG vaccination coverage in Africa from 1990 to 2022.
Research
Prevention of rheumatic heart disease in New Zealand: High-dose subcutaneous benzathine penicillin is cost-saving compared with traditional intramuscular injectionsAcute rheumatic fever is a preventable condition that can lead to chronic illness and early death. Standard prevention with 4-weekly intramuscular (IM) benzathine penicillin G (BPG) injections for ≥10 years may be associated with poor adherence. High-dose 10-weekly subcutaneous penicillin injections (SCIP) may improve adherence by reducing injection frequency.
Research
Levels of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine coverage and indirect protection against invasive pneumococcal disease and pneumonia hospitalisations in Australia: An observational studyThere is limited empiric evidence on the coverage of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) required to generate substantial indirect protection. We investigate the association between population PCV coverage and indirect protection against invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) and pneumonia hospitalisations among undervaccinated Australian children.
Research
PCV10 elicits Protein D IgG responses in Papua New Guinean children but has no impact on NTHi carriage in the first two years of lifeNasopharyngeal colonisation with nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) is associated with development of infections including pneumonia and otitis media. The 10-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV10) uses NTHi Protein D (PD) as a carrier. Papua New Guinean children have exceptionally early and dense NTHi carriage, and high rates of NTHi-associated disease.
Research
Bacille Calmette-Guérin vaccine reprograms human neonatal lipid metabolism in vivo and in vitroVaccines have generally been developed with limited insight into their molecular impact. While systems vaccinology enables characterization of mechanisms of action, these tools have yet to be applied to infants, who are at high risk of infection and receive the most vaccines. Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) protects infants against disseminated tuberculosis (TB) and TB-unrelated infections via incompletely understood mechanisms.