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The Respiratory Microbiome in Paediatric Chronic Wet Cough: What Is Known and Future Directions

Chronic wet cough for longer than 4 weeks is a hallmark of chronic suppurative lung diseases, including protracted bacterial bronchitis, and bronchiectasis in children. Severe lower respiratory infection early in life is a major risk factor of PBB and paediatric bronchiectasis. 

Combination of clinical symptoms and blood biomarkers can improve discrimination between bacterial or viral community-acquired pneumonia in children

Combining elevated CRP with the presence or absence of clinical signs/ symptoms differentiates definite bacterial from presumed viral pneumonia better than CRP alone

Bacterial Respiratory Infectious Disease Group (BRIDG)

The Bacterial Respiratory Infectious Disease Group (BRIDG) has a major focus ear and lung disease involving Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae.

Associate Professor Lea-Ann Kirkham

Co-Head, Bacterial Respiratory Infectious Disease Group; Microbiology Lead, Wesfarmers Centre of Vaccines & Infectious Diseases

Clinical predictors of hypoxic pneumonia in children from the Eastern Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea: secondary analysis of two prospective observational studies

Pneumonia is the leading cause of death in young children globally and is prevalent in the Papua New Guinea highlands. We investigated clinical predictors of hypoxic pneumonia to inform local treatment guidelines in this resource-limited setting.

An infant mouse model of influenza-driven nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae colonization and acute otitis media suitable for preclinical testing of novel therapies

Nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) is a major otitis media (OM) pathogen, with colonization a prerequisite for disease development. Most acute OM is in children <5 years old, with recurrent and chronic OM impacting hearing and learning. Therapies to prevent NTHi colonization and/or disease are needed, especially for young children. Respiratory viruses are implicated in driving the development of bacterial OM in children.

Immunogenicity of a Third Scheduled Dose of Rotarix in Australian Indigenous Infants: A Phase IV, Double-blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial

Jonathan Lea-Ann Tom Carapetis AM Kirkham Snelling AM MBBS FRACP FAFPHM PhD FAHMS PhD BMBS DTMH GDipClinEpid PhD FRACP Co-Head, Strep A Translation;

Mucosal immune cell priming by intranasally delivered Haemophilus haemolyticus is associated with heterologous protection against influenza and nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae

Intranasal vaccines offer a needle-free strategy to enhance immunity to respiratory infections. We investigated the mechanism of action of a novel intranasal vaccine using the human respiratory commensal Haemophilus haemolyticus, previously shown to protect against nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae otitis media and accelerate clearance of influenza A virus.