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Research
Influenza and pertussis vaccine coverage in pregnancy in Australia, 2016-2021Vaccination in pregnancy is the best strategy to reduce complications from influenza or pertussis infection in infants who are too young to be protected directly from vaccination. Pregnant women are also at risk of influenza complications preventable through antenatal vaccination. Both vaccines are funded under the National Immunisation Program for pregnant women in Australia, but coverage is not routinely reported nationally.
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Widening the lens for pandemic preparedness: children must be seen and heardThe Australian and New Zealand Paediatric Infectious Diseases (ANZPID) Group of the Australasian Society for Infectious Diseases (ASID) calls for urgent consideration of the needs and voices of children in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and in planning for future pandemics.
Research
Effectiveness of 2023 southern hemisphere influenza vaccines against severe influenza-associated illness: pooled estimates from eight countries using the test-negative designAnnual estimates of seasonal influenza vaccine effectiveness can guide global risk communication and vaccination strategies to mitigate influenza-associated illness. We aimed to evaluate vaccine effectiveness in countries using the 2023 southern hemisphere influenza vaccine formulation.
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Estimating the impact of Western Australia's first respiratory syncytial virus immunisation program for all infants: A mathematical modelling studyThe Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration approved the use of nirsevimab, a long-acting monoclonal antibody for the prevention of Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), in November 2023. Western Australia (WA) implemented a combination of nirsevimab administration strategies designed to protect all infants starting in April 2024, before the epidemic season. We developed a dynamic transmission model to predict the impact of WA's RSV immunisation program on infant hospitalisations.
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Haemophilus influenzae remains the predominant otitis media pathogen in Australian children undergoing ventilation tube insertion in the PCV13 eraUnderstanding patterns of bacterial carriage and otitis media (OM) microbiology is crucial for assessing vaccine impact and informing policy. The microbiology of OM can vary with geography, time, and interventions like pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs). We evaluated the microbiology of nasopharyngeal and middle ear effusions in children living in Western Australia, 11 years following the introduction of PCV13.

News & Events
The Kids Research Institute Australia leads WA arm of Australia’s first needle-free COVID-19 vaccine studyEnrolments for Australia’s first needle-free, gene-based COVID-19 vaccine study – to be led in WA by The Kids Research Institute Australia – are open.
Research
Overall efficacy of HPV-16/18 AS04-adjuvanted vaccine against grade 3 or greater cervical intraepithelial neoplasiaWe report vaccine efficacy against CIN3+ and adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS) in the end-of-study analysis of PApilloma TRIal against Cancer In young Adults.
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Group a streptococcal carriage and seroepidemiology in children up to 10 years of age in Australia.This study aimed to acquire nationally representative epidemiological data on GAS in Australia to scope the appropriate age for vaccination with a potential...
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Limited impact of neonatal or early infant schedules of 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccinationEarly 7vPCV schedules have limited impact on pneumococcal vaccine type carriage in PNG
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Children with otitis media mount a pneumococcal serotype specific serum IgG and IgA response comparable to healthy controls after pneumococcal conjugate vaccinationWe investigated the suggestion that otitis-prone children have an impaired antibody response in the context of pneumococcal vaccination.