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Yalemzewod Assefa Gelaw PhD, MPH, BSc Honorary Research Associate Yalemzewod.Gelaw@thekids.org.au Honorary Research Associate Dr Yalemzewod Gelaw
The neonatal skin is central to early survival and immune development. Far from being a passive mechanical barrier, it integrates physical, chemical, and microbial defences that together protect the infant in the immediate postnatal period. In preterm infants, structural immaturity, reduced antimicrobial capacity, and altered microbial colonisation confer heightened vulnerability to infection and inflammation.
Developing dietary guidelines for lactating women presents significant challenges, due to limited evidence being available on their specific nutrient needs and the biological impacts of various dietary dimensions. Current dietary recommendations often rely on data from nonlactating women, leading to potential inaccuracies.
Autistic children experience significantly higher rates of anxiety compared to nonautistic children. The precise relations between autism characteristics and anxiety symptoms remain unclear in this population. Previous work has explored associations at the domain level, which involve examining broad categories or clusters of symptoms, rather than the relationships between specific symptoms and/or individual characteristics. We addressed this gap by taking a network approach to understand the shared structure of autism characteristics and anxiety symptoms.
Research on the health literacy of parents with children with intellectual disability is limited. Understanding parents' healthcare skills and needs is essential for improving children's health and developing effective support. In this study we aimed to (1) explore the health literacy skills of parents that enabled them to support the health needs of their child with intellectual disability and the factors influencing these skills, and (2) identify opportunities to support parent health literacy.
Information on factors contributing to quality of life (QOL) informs meaningful patient-centred care. We evaluated factors influencing QOL in individuals with developmental and epileptic encephalopathy (DEE) and other severe neurodevelopmental encephalopathy conditions using hypothesis-free regression tree analysis.
Human milk is a rich source of immunomodulatory factors that influence the development of the infant immune system, including susceptibility to allergic diseases. Among these components, milk antibodies have been extensively studied for their role in protecting against infections; however, their potential contribution to allergy prevention may be equally important. The mechanisms of protection include allergen exclusion, enhanced and targeted antigen presentation, immune modulation via shaping of the infant gut microbiome, and direct regulation of gut immune responses.
The aim of this study was to identify and prioritise the ten most important unanswered themes in rare disease research in Australia by integrating perspectives of key stakeholders, including people living with rare disease, parents/carers, health professionals, and rare disease community advocates.
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer, Asexual/Aromantic (LGBTIQA+) people and other individuals with diverse sexual orientation, sex and/or gender identity experience intimate partner violence (IPV) at higher rates than non-LGBTIQA+ people but often receive inconsistent culturally competent healthcare, which deters help-seeking.
Monkeypox virus (MPXV) has been linked to vertical transmission, but systematic data are scarce. We aimed to describe the sociodemographic, clinical, and virological characteristics and assess the frequency and determinants of adverse outcomes in pregnant women with MPXV clade I infection.