Centre Of Research Excellence (CRE) In Newborn Medicine
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,622,320.00
Summary
Problems around birth are common and can have long-term implications, including into adulthood. Our goal is to improve health outcomes for all newborn babies and their families by determining factors that enhance outcome and assessing the benefits and consequences of new treatments for mothers and babies. We are world leaders in this field and are dedicated to training the next generation of health professionals in the care of newborn babies, in Australia and the rest of the world.
Motor problems, ranging from clumsiness to cerebral palsy, are one of the most common adverse outcomes in children born early. This study will investigate the motor development of children born <30 weeks’ gestation compared with peers born at term from birth to 5 years. We will determine whether early clinical evaluations or neuroimaging in the newborn period can predict later motor impairment at 5 years to be able to identify those who will benefit most from early intervention.
Air Pollution And Mortality And Morbidity In Adult Australians (APMMA Study): A Large Population Based Cohort Study
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,041,410.00
Summary
This study will investigate the link between respiratory and cardiovascular disease and mortality and exposure to long-term air pollution. We will use cutting edge methods to assign neighbourhood air pollution levels to a large cohort of NSW adults (n>265,000) previously recruited in the 45 and Up Study. The study results will be of utmost importance in setting outdoor air pollution standards and informing cost benefit analyses of air pollution control strategies.
Rapidly giving intravenous fluid to prevent or treat shock (fluid resuscitation) is one of the commonest treatments given to critically ill patients. Current guidelines recommend crystalloid solutions but it is unknown whether any particular crystalloid is better than others. This trial will determine whether the use of one of two crystalloid fluids, saline or PlasmaLyte, reduces the risk of organ injuries, such as kidney failure, and improves patients chances of surviving critically illness.
Demographic and social dimensions of migrant ageing and wellbeing in Australia. This project aims to examine the deterioration of health and wellbeing in migrant communities in Australia over time. Some migrant groups suffer higher mortality and morbidity in older age, despite having better health than non-migrants upon arrival in the host country. By consolidating and analysing a wide range of quantitative data and conducting qualitative fieldwork among ten migrant groups in Australia, the proj ....Demographic and social dimensions of migrant ageing and wellbeing in Australia. This project aims to examine the deterioration of health and wellbeing in migrant communities in Australia over time. Some migrant groups suffer higher mortality and morbidity in older age, despite having better health than non-migrants upon arrival in the host country. By consolidating and analysing a wide range of quantitative data and conducting qualitative fieldwork among ten migrant groups in Australia, the project aims to produce new estimates of healthy life expectancy and investigate how social capital sustains health throughout the ageing process. The project will inform government policymakers, migrant aged care service providers, and migrant communities in supporting quality of life outcomes.Read moreRead less
Antagonist Of Corticotrophin Releasing Hormone As Therapeutic Agents For The Prevention Of Premature Birth In Humans
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$376,650.00
Summary
In developed countries the most common cause of the death of a newborn baby is premature delivery. Pre-term delivery remains the greatest cause of neonatal mortality in the western world and a major consumer of health dollars (approx. $5-7B per year in the US alone). However, a delay in the onset of labour from 20 to 25 weeks has been shown to result in a 55% greater probability of infant survival (550 fewer deaths per 1000). This project will allow: The development of new drugs that will allow ....In developed countries the most common cause of the death of a newborn baby is premature delivery. Pre-term delivery remains the greatest cause of neonatal mortality in the western world and a major consumer of health dollars (approx. $5-7B per year in the US alone). However, a delay in the onset of labour from 20 to 25 weeks has been shown to result in a 55% greater probability of infant survival (550 fewer deaths per 1000). This project will allow: The development of new drugs that will allow the extension of pregnancy term The development of protocols that will in turn reduce neonatal mortality. Additionally we believe that these new agents will be useful in preventing the onset of labour after fetal surgery. Currently there are no effective treatments capable of substantially changing delivery dates. Available therapeutics delay the onset of labour, at best, 24 hours. However, recent exciting results from our laboratories show that rising concentrations of the placental peptide Corticotrophin Releasing Hormone (CRH) are associated with the onset of labour. Further, we have also delayed the onset of labour in pregnant sheep by infusing a relatively insoluble CRH antagonist into the sheep fetus. Labour commenced ONLY AFTER the drug was withdrawn from the mother. This project builds upon an interdisciplinary team: medicinal chemists, molecular modellers, pharmacologists and endocrinologists, to further develop an exciting Australian discovery. Successful completeion of this research will, for the first time, allow the control of pregnancy duration MAXIMISING the benefits to mother and child, reducing mortality and later life morbidities typically associated with premature birth.Read moreRead less
Putting death in its place. The project aims to link 890,000 population records to place of residence from 1838 to 1930, to examine the relationships between where people live, mortality, life expectancy and health. Where people live impacts their life-course outcomes. Using novel matching techniques, the project expects to identify intergenerational changes and the spatial dynamics of inequality and social mobility. Expected outcomes include the creation of a public resource of linked data and ....Putting death in its place. The project aims to link 890,000 population records to place of residence from 1838 to 1930, to examine the relationships between where people live, mortality, life expectancy and health. Where people live impacts their life-course outcomes. Using novel matching techniques, the project expects to identify intergenerational changes and the spatial dynamics of inequality and social mobility. Expected outcomes include the creation of a public resource of linked data and a better understanding of long-run health and inequality. These should provide economic and social benefits by informing policy aimed at contemporary social and health challenges, enhancing our understanding of Australian history, and developing public resources.Read moreRead less
Intergenerational Transmission of Inequality. There is a growing interest in the ways in which biological and socioeconomic heritage can shape vulnerabilities to disease. Once viewed as primarily a product of recent conditions such as lifestyle choices, it is now evident that health outcomes can also be shaped by intergenerational mechanisms. Analysis of these in current populations is impractical given the considerable time it would take for a prospective study to unfold. The analysis of histor ....Intergenerational Transmission of Inequality. There is a growing interest in the ways in which biological and socioeconomic heritage can shape vulnerabilities to disease. Once viewed as primarily a product of recent conditions such as lifestyle choices, it is now evident that health outcomes can also be shaped by intergenerational mechanisms. Analysis of these in current populations is impractical given the considerable time it would take for a prospective study to unfold. The analysis of historical populations, however, presents an opportunity to circumvent this obstacle. Using data for male and female convicts and their descendants, this project seeks to determine the extent to which disadvantage experienced by one generation impacted on the life expectancy of those that followed.Read moreRead less
Immunising Aboriginal Mothers With Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine To Prevent Infant Ear Disease And Carriage
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,131,530.00
Summary
Aboriginal children experience the highest rates of acute and chronic ear infections in the world, with resultant permanent ear damage, hearing loss and educational disadvantage. These infections are mainly bacterial, and Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) is the predominant pathogen. Pneumococcal colonisation and infection begins within days of birth, many months before any potential immunological protection from infant pneumococcal conjugate vaccine may be expected. New strategies are nee ....Aboriginal children experience the highest rates of acute and chronic ear infections in the world, with resultant permanent ear damage, hearing loss and educational disadvantage. These infections are mainly bacterial, and Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) is the predominant pathogen. Pneumococcal colonisation and infection begins within days of birth, many months before any potential immunological protection from infant pneumococcal conjugate vaccine may be expected. New strategies are needed to eliminate, or at least delay, this early-onset pneumococcal colonisation. One such strategy is the administration to the mother of pneumococcal vaccine, which may protect the newborn infant by leading to higher titres of transplacental or breast milk pneumococcal antibodies and-or by reducing carriage (and transmission to the infant) of maternal pneumococci. Previous small studies using this strategy have been encouraging, but there have been no studies properly evaluating carriage or disease endpoints in infants. The polysaccharide pneumococcal vaccine is currently recommended for all Aboriginal and Torres Islander persons aged 15 years or more in the Northern Territory but uptake of the vaccine has been poor. We propose to conduct a pilot study to determine if maternal immunisation with this vaccine, either in the third trimester of pregancy of immediately following delivery, can reduce pneumococcal carriage and the prevalence of middle ear disease among Aboriginal infants at seven months of age. We aim to recruit 210 Aboriginal women who have uncomplicated pregnancies from Darwin and remote communities in the Top End of the Northern Territory. Each subject and their infant offspring will be followed-up after vaccination and at birth, one , two and seven months after birth.Read moreRead less