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Reports and Findings

Research

Patient positioning and its impact on perioperative outcomes in children: A narrative review

Patient positioning interacts with a number of body systems and can impact clinically important perioperative outcomes. In this educational review, we present the available evidence on the impact that patient positioning can have in the pediatric perioperative setting. A literature search was conducted using search terms that focused on pediatric perioperative outcomes prioritized by contemporary research in this area.

Research

Who suffered most? Parental stress and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany

This study examines gender and socioeconomic inequalities in parental psychological wellbeing (parenting stress and psychological distress) during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany. Background: The dramatic shift of childcare and schooling responsibility from formal institutions to private households during the pandemic has put families under enormous stress and raised concerns about caregivers’ health and wellbeing.

Research

Inhibition of macrophage infectivity potentiator in Burkholderia pseudomallei suppresses pro-inflammatory responses in murine macrophages

Melioidosis, caused by the Gram-negative bacterium Burkholderia pseudomallei, is a disease endemic in many tropical countries globally. Clinical presentation is highly variable, ranging from asymptomatic to fatal septicemia, and thus the outcome of infection can depend on the host immune responses. 

Research

Azithromycin reduces bronchial wall thickening in infants with cystic fibrosis

COMBAT-CF showed that children aged 0-3 years treated with azithromycin did clinically better than placebo but there was no effect on CT-scores. We reanalysed CTs using an automatic bronchus-artery (BA) analysis.

Research

Symbiotic symphony: Understanding host-microbiota dialogues in a spatial context

Modern precision sequencing techniques have established humans as a holobiont that live in symbiosis with the microbiome. Microbes play an active role throughout the life of a human ranging from metabolism and immunity to disease tolerance. Hence, it is of utmost significance to study the eukaryotic host in conjunction with the microbial antigens to obtain a complete picture of the host-microbiome crosstalk. 

Research

Capacity building to address antimicrobial resistance in remote Australia: The inaugural HOT NORTH Antimicrobial Academy

Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) for some pathogens in Australia are considerably higher in rural and remote compared to urban regions. The inaugural Hot North Antimicrobial Academy was a 9-month educational programme aimed to build workforce knowledge and capacity in antimicrobial use, audit, stewardship, surveillance and drug resistance in remote primary health care. 

Research

A novel precision-serology assay for SARS-CoV-2 infection based on linear B-cell epitopes of Spike protein

The COVID-19 pandemic illustrates the need for serology diagnostics with improved accuracy. While conventional serology based on recognition of entire proteins or subunits thereof has made significant contribution to the antibody assessment space, it often suffers from sub-optimal specificity. Epitope-based, high-precision, serology assays hold potential to capture the high specificity and diversity of the immune system, hence circumventing the cross-reactivity with closely related microbial antigens. 

Research

Efficacy of the MiniMed™ 670G hybrid closed loop system in managing postprandial glucose excursion with high protein high fat foods in children and adolescents under free-living conditions

High protein high fat meals are considered “difficult” foods because they can cause prolonged hyperglycemia after ingestion. The potential of hybrid closed loop therapy in managing postprandial glucose excursions with these difficult foods remains unknown. This pilot study aimed to explore the impact of manual mode in standard insulin pump therapy and auto mode with hybrid closed loop pump therapy in managing glucose excursions caused by HPHF foods and to obtain feedback from families about each mode.

Research

Conceptualising Wellbeing for Australian Aboriginal LGBTQA+ Young People

It is likely that young people who are both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and LGBTQA+ would be at increased risk for poor mental health outcomes due to the layered impacts of discrimination they experience; however, there is very little empirical evidence focused on the mental health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander LGBTQA+ young people. The current study represents a qualitative exploration of wellbeing among Aboriginal LGBTQA+ young people. 

Research

Simultaneous multiple breath washout and oxygen-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging in healthy adults

Lung function testing and lung imaging are commonly used techniques to monitor respiratory diseases, such as cystic fibrosis (CF). The nitrogen (N2) multiple-breath washout technique (MBW) has been shown to detect ventilation inhomogeneity in CF, but the underlying pathophysiological processes that are altered are often unclear.