ProbioticTreatment Of Diarrhoeal Disease And Malnutrition In Top End Aboriginal Children
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$332,036.00
Summary
Aboriginal children in the Top End of Australia have high rates of hospital admission for diarrhoea and malnutrition. We have discovered that underlying small intestinal damage in these children is an important contributor to the high complication rates and longer lengths of stay in hospital compared to non-Aboriginal children. This research proposes to continue our work on small intestinal damage by using two non-invasive tests of gut function, namely a sugar absorption test and novel breath te ....Aboriginal children in the Top End of Australia have high rates of hospital admission for diarrhoea and malnutrition. We have discovered that underlying small intestinal damage in these children is an important contributor to the high complication rates and longer lengths of stay in hospital compared to non-Aboriginal children. This research proposes to continue our work on small intestinal damage by using two non-invasive tests of gut function, namely a sugar absorption test and novel breath test. The sugar permeability test involves the children drinking a solution of the two sugars lactulose and rhamnose, and measuring their absorption into the blood 90 minutes later using a sophisticated measuring instrument called HPLC, which can measure minuscule amounts of sugars and is set up at Royal Darwin Hospital. The breath test involves children drinking another sugar solution with a special non-radioactive marker called a stable isotope of carbon, and measuring changes in the amount of this marker in carbon dioxide from the breath at timed periods after drinking the sugar solution. The breath is analysed in Adelaide using another sophisticated instrument. These tests are being used to measure abnormal sugar absorption due to intestinal damage, which is particularly common in Aboriginal children during the weaning period of 4-18 months. Our hypothesis is that treatment with 'healthy germs' (probiotics) like those in certain yoghourts will colonise the gut, stimulate immunity and reduce the presence of 'nasty germs' (pathogenic bacteria) in the intestines of Aboriginal children which contribute to the need for their hospitalisation with diarrhoea and malnutrition. If this hypothesis is correct, then this research will provide the best kind of evidence for reducing the need for hospital treatment by treating all cases of diarrhoea with these probiotics and possibly even decreasing the gut damage of children in the weaning period by including probiotics in their dietsRead moreRead less
Management Of Refeeding Syndrome In Critical Illness: An AuSPEN Endorsed Multi-centre Clinical Trial
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,366,987.00
Summary
Critically ill hospitalised patients are frequently malnourished. When feeding is reestablished in malnourished patients, they often exhibit severe electrolyte imbalances and metabolic disturbances that can lead to slower recovery times, increased complications and even death. The purpose of this clinical trial is to investigate the benefits of a conservative approach of managing critically ill patients with refeeding syndrome.
I am a physiologist focused on the role of dietary protein on excess weight gain. In the proposed study, I will examine energy balance in lean and overweight individuals in response to a 4-day covertly manipulated 10, 15 or 25% protein diet. We will measure effects on hunger using subjective ratings and hormone levels and the affects on energy expenditure including resting metabolic rate, the energy it takes to digest food and physical activity levels.
Prophylactic Early Parenteral Nutrition In Patients Undergoing Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation: A Multi-centre Randomised Controlled Trial.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,131,673.00
Summary
We intend to conduct a multi-centre clinical trial in patients receiving bone marrow transplants to determine whether very early nutrition support improves overall survival.
Improving Child Health And Development In Resource-constrained Settings: A Multi-component Study To Inform Policy And More Effective Interventions
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$314,644.00
Summary
This Fellowship will provide innovative, robust evidence of the magnitude of malnutrition and compromised development among children in a large number of low- and middle-income countries and the impact of modifiable social determinants on these profoundly important public health problems. This will inform policy making and the development of effective interventions in disadvantaged groups worldwide.
The Indigenous Australian Malnutrition project aims to explore the burden and impact of malnutrition particularly for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients in hospital. The project includes the development and validation of the Australian Nutrition Tool (ANT) and validating the Malnutrition Screening Tool (MST) as an appropriate screening tool for Indigenous Australian patients. The project also aims to determine the prevalence of adult malnutrition and explore its burden and impact.