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Research
Facilitating knowledge transfer during Australia’s COVID-19 vaccine rollout: an examination of ‘Functional Dialogues’ as an approach to bridge the evidence–policy gapOur interdisciplinary team initiated a project to inform the COVID-19 vaccination programme. We developed a novel research co-creation approach to share emerging findings with government.
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Optimising a 6-plex tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis fluorescent bead-based immunoassaySmall volume assays are required for large-scale research studies and in particular paediatric trials, where multiple measures are required from a single sample. Fluorescent bead-based technology (Bioplex/Luminex) allows high through-put and simultaneous quantification of multiple analytes in a single test. This technology uses sets of microspheres, each with a unique spectral address that can be coated with a different antigen of interest.
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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.
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Severe adverse reactions to benzathine penicillin G in rheumatic heart disease: A systematic review and meta-analysisFear of severe adverse reaction (SAR) and reluctance of health care providers to administer intramuscular injections are major contributing factors to poor adherence of benzathine penicillin G (BPG) in the management of rheumatic heart disease (RHD). However, data on the risk of SARs following BPG injections for RHD are relatively limited and inconclusive. Our systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the incidence of SARs associated with BPG injections used for secondary prophylaxis of RHD.
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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.
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Vaccination strategies to enhance immunity in neonatesProtection may be further improved by integrating these approaches, namely vaccinating the neonate under the cover of vertically transferred maternal immunity
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The non-specific and sex-differential effects of vaccinesThe textbook view of vaccination is that it functions to induce immune memory of the specific pathogen components of the vaccine, leading to a quantitatively and qualitatively better response if the host is exposed to infection with the same pathogen
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Timeliness and factors associated with rotavirus vaccine uptake among Australian Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children: A record linkage cohort studyAboriginal children are at greater risk of rotavirus disease than non-Aboriginal children and delayed vaccine receipt is substantially higher
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Immunogenicity and boosting following a reduced number of doses of a Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine in infants and toddlersThe minimum number of doses of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine required for protection is not known. We studied the immunogenicity of a reduced schedule in...
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A comparison of booster immunisation with a combination DTPa-IPV vaccine or DTPa plus IPV in separate injections when co-administered with MMRThis study evaluated GSK's combined DTPa-IPV vaccine (Infanrix-IPV) given as a fifth consecutive acellular pertussis booster dose in conjunction...