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Preterm birth and exercise capacity: what do we currently know?The long-term cardiopulmonary outcomes following preterm birth during the surfactant era remain unclear. Respiratory symptoms, particularly exertional symptoms, are common in preterm children. Therefore, cardiopulmonary exercise testing may provide insights into the pathophysiology driving exertional respiratory symptoms in those born preterm. This review aims to outline the current knowledge of cardiopulmonary exercise testing in the assessment of children born preterm in the surfactant era.
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Modelling temperature-driven changes in species associations across freshwater communitiesDue to global climate change–induced shifts in species distributions, estimating changes in community composition through the use of Species Distribution Models has become a key management tool. Being able to determine how species associations change along environmental gradients is likely to be pivotal in exploring the magnitude of future changes in species’ distributions.
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Increase in invasive group A streptococcal disease among Australian children coinciding with northern hemisphere surgesIncreases in invasive group A streptococcal disease (iGAS) have recently been reported in multiple countries in the northern hemisphere, occurring during, and outside of, typical spring peaks. We report the epidemiology of iGAS among children in Australia from 1 July 2018 to 31 December 2022.
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Emulator-based Bayesian optimization for efficient multi-objective calibration of an individual-based model of malariaIndividual-based models have become important tools in the global battle against infectious diseases, yet model complexity can make calibration to biological and epidemiological data challenging. We propose using a Bayesian optimization framework employing Gaussian process or machine learning emulator functions to calibrate a complex malaria transmission simulator.
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Reproducible Bioinformatics Analysis Workflows for Detecting IGH Gene Fusions in B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia PatientsB-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (B-ALL) is characterised by diverse genomic alterations, the most frequent being gene fusions detected via transcriptomic analysis (mRNA-seq). Due to its hypervariable nature, gene fusions involving the Immunoglobulin Heavy Chain (IGH) locus can be difficult to detect with standard gene fusion calling algorithms and significant computational resources and analysis times are required. We aimed to optimize a gene fusion calling workflow to achieve best-case sensitivity for IGH gene fusion detection.
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Perspectives of patients, family members, health professionals and the public on the impact of COVID-19 on mental healthThe coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has seen a global surge in anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and stress. Aims: This study aimed to describe the perspectives of patients with COVID-19, their family, health professionals, and the general public on the impact of COVID-19 on mental health.
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The type II RAF inhibitor tovorafenib in relapsed/refractory pediatric low-grade glioma: the phase 2 FIREFLY-1 trialBRAF genomic alterations are the most common oncogenic drivers in pediatric low-grade glioma.
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Factors influencing the attainment of major motor milestones in CDKL5 deficiency disorderThis study investigated the influence of factors at birth and in infancy on the likelihood of achieving major motor milestones in CDKL5 Deficiency Disorder (CDD). Data on 350 individuals with a pathogenic CDKL5 variant was sourced from the International CDKL5 Disorder Database.
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Invasive aspergillosis in adult patients in Australia and New Zealand: 2017–2020New and emerging risks for invasive aspergillosis (IA) bring the need for contemporary analyses of the epidemiology and outcomes of IA, in order to improve clinical practice.
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The impact a Mediterranean Diet in the third trimester of pregnancy has on neonatal body fat percentageMaternal diet during pregnancy has long been recognised as an important determinant of neonatal outcomes and child development. Infant body composition is a potentially modifiable risk factor for predicting future health and metabolic disease.
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A biobank of pediatric patient-derived-xenograft models in cancer precision medicine trial MAPPYACTS for relapsed and refractory tumorsPediatric patients with recurrent and refractory cancers are in most need for new treatments. This study developed patient-derived-xenograft (PDX) models within the European MAPPYACTS cancer precision medicine trial.
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Western Australian health care workers’ views on mandatory COVID-19 vaccination for the workplaceHealth care workers (HCWs) are at an increased risk of catching and spreading Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) compared with the general community, putting health systems at risk. Several jurisdictions globally have mandated or are looking to mandate COVID-19 vaccines for this cohort, but little is known about the acceptability of this measure, especially in different contexts, and there is little qualitative data to explore nuance, depth, and the reasons behind HCWs’ opinions.
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A review of pediatric fasting guidelines and strategies to help children manage preoperative fastingFasting for surgery is a routine step in the preoperative preparation for surgery. There have however been increasing concerns with regard to the high incidence of prolonged fasting in children, and the subsequent psycho-social distress and physiological consequences that this poses.
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‘Torn in two’: Experiences of Mothers Who Are Pregnant when Their Child Is Diagnosed With CancerMothers of children diagnosed with cancer have been shown to experience high rates of psychological distress and poor physical health. Pregnancy further increases the healthcare needs of mothers due to the marked physiological changes and psychological adaptations.
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Incremental effectiveness of 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine against pneumonia hospitalisation among Australian Indigenous children: A record linkage studyThe impact of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) on pneumonia in children is well-documented but data on 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23) are lacking. Between 2001 and 2011, Indigenous children in Western Australia (WA) were recommended to receive PPV23 at 18-24 months of age following 3 doses of 7-valent PCV. We evaluated the incremental effectiveness of PPV23 against pneumonia hospitalisation.
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Spring-infusors: How a simple and small solution can create king-sized complexityThe aims of the study were to investigate family and hospital staff views about the use of spring-infusor devices for administration of intravenous antibiotic medications, to examine if the device is acceptable and feasible and to map a process for implementation.
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Nirsevimab binding-site conservation in respiratory syncytial virus fusion glycoprotein worldwide between 1956 and 2021: an analysis of observational study sequencing dataNirsevimab is an extended half-life monoclonal antibody to the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) fusion protein that has been developed to protect infants for an entire RSV season. Previous studies have shown that the nirsevimab binding site is highly conserved. However, investigations of the geotemporal evolution of potential escape variants in recent (ie, 2015–2021) RSV seasons have been minimal.
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Enabling successful life engagement in young people with ADHD: new components beyond adult models of recoveryTo examine the lived experiences of young people successfully managing life with ADHD and investigate the applicability of adult models of Recovery to these individuals.
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Making a SmartStart for peanut introduction to support food allergy prevention guidelines for infantsFood allergy affects up to 10% of Australian infants. It was hypothesized that if parents follow the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy guidelines, Australian food allergy rates may stabilize or decline.