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Erratum: Attitudes, perceptions, and experiences of Western Australians towards vaccine safety surveillance systems following COVID-19 vaccines: A qualitative descriptive study (Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health (2024) 48(1), (S132602002

Concerns regarding adverse events following immunisation are a barrier to vaccine uptake. Health professionals use vaccine safety surveillance systems (VSSS) to monitor vaccines and inform the public of safety data. With little known about public attitudes, perceptions, and experiences with VSSS, we examined them in the context of COVID-19 vaccinations in Western Australia.

Bringing optimised COVID-19 vaccine schedules to immunocompromised populations (BOOST-IC): study protocol for an adaptive randomised controlled clinical trial

Immunocompromised hosts experience more breakthrough infections and worse clinical outcomes following infection with COVID-19 than immunocompetent people. Prophylactic monoclonal antibody therapies can be challenging to access, and escape variants emerge rapidly. Immunity conferred through vaccination remains a central prevention strategy for COVID-19.

Patient preferences for prophylactic regimens requiring regular injections in children and adolescents: A systematic review and thematic analysis

At present, limited literature exists exploring patient preferences for prophylactic treatment of acute rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease. Given low treatment completion rates to this treatment in Australia, where the burden of disease predominantly affects Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, an improved understanding of factors driving patient preference is required to improve outcomes.

Pneumococcal carriage, serotype distribution, and antimicrobial susceptibility in Papua New Guinean children vaccinated with PCV10 or PCV13 in a head-to-head trial

Children in Papua New Guinea (PNG) are at high risk of pneumococcal infections. We investigated pneumococcal carriage rates, serotype distribution, and antimicrobial susceptibility in PNG children after vaccination with 10-valent or 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCV10; PCV13).

Determining the true incidence of seasonal respiratory syncytial virus-confirmed hospitalizations in preterm and term infants in Western Australia

Respiratory syncytial virus contributes to significant global infant morbidity and mortality. We applied a previously developed statistical prediction model incorporating pre-pandemic RSV testing data and hospital admission data to estimate infant RSV-hospitalizations by birth month and prematurity, focused on infants aged <1 year.

The epidemiology of superficial Streptococcal A (impetigo and pharyngitis) infections in Australia: A systematic review

Streptoccocal A (Strep A, GAS) infections in Australia are responsible for significant morbidity and mortality through both invasive (iGAS) and post-streptococcal (postGAS) diseases as well as preceding superficial (sGAS) skin and throat infection. The burden of iGAS and postGAS are addressed in some jurisdictions by mandatory notification systems; in contrast, the burden of preceding sGAS has no reporting structure, and is less well defined.

Impaired interferon response in plasmacytoid dendritic cells from children with persistent wheeze

Impaired interferon response and allergic sensitization may contribute to virus-induced wheeze and asthma development in young children. Plasmacytoid dendritic cells play a key role in antiviral immunity as critical producers of type I interferons.

Skin-Microbiome Assembly in Preterm Infants during the First Three Weeks of Life and Impact of Topical Coconut Oil Application

The structure and function of infant skin is not fully developed until 34 weeks of gestation, and this immaturity is associated with risk of late-onset sepsis (LOS). Topical coconut oil improves preterm-infant skin integrity and may reduce LOS. However, data on early-life skin-microbiome succession and potential effects of emollient skin care in preterm infants are scarce.

A Phase III, multicenter, randomized, double-blind, active comparator-controlled study to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity of V114 compared with PCV13 in healthy infants (PNEU-PED-EU-1)

V114 (15-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine [PCV]) contains all serotypes in 13-valent PCV (PCV13) and additional serotypes 22F and 33F. This study evaluated safety and immunogenicity of V114 compared with PCV13 in healthy infants, and concomitant administration with DTPa-HBV-IPV/Hib and rotavirus RV1 vaccines.

Single-nucleus RNA sequencing of pre-malignant liver reveals disease-associated hepatocyte state with HCC prognostic potential

Current approaches to staging chronic liver diseases have limited utility for predicting liver cancer risk. Here, we employed single-nucleus RNA sequencing (snRNA-seq) to characterize the cellular microenvironment of healthy and pre-malignant livers using two distinct mouse models.