Emergency Department Presentations by Children in Remote Australia: A Population-based Study.

Aboriginal leaders invited us to examine the frequency and reasons for emergency department (ED) presentations by children in remote Western Australia, where Prenatal Alcohol Exposure (PAE) is common. . ED presentations (2007-11 inclusive) were examined for all children born in the Fitzroy Valley in 2002-03.

Review of Aboriginal child health services in remote Western Australia identifies challenges and informs solutions.

Background: Despite a national focus on closing the gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal child health outcomes in Australia, there remain significant challenges, including provision of health services in very remote communities. We aimed to identify and map child health services in the very remote Fitzroy Valley, West Kimberley, and document barriers to effective service delivery.

Methods: Identification and review of all regional child health services and staffing in 2013.

The picture talk project: Aboriginal community input on consent for research.

Background: The consent and community engagement process for research with Indigenous communities is rarely evaluated. Research protocols are not always collaborative, inclusive or culturally respectful. If participants do not trust or understand the research, selection bias may occur in recruitment, affecting study results potentially denying participants the opportunity to provide more knowledge and greater understanding about their community.

Research protocol for the Picture Talk Project: a qualitative study on research and consent with remote Australian Aboriginal communities.

Introduction: Research with Indigenous populations is not always designed with cultural sensitivity. Few publications evaluate or describe in detail seeking consent for research with Indigenous participants. When potential participants are not engaged in a culturally respectful manner, participation rates and research quality can be adversely affected.

Prevalence and profile of Neurodevelopment and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) amongst Australian Aboriginal children living in remote communities.

Background: Despite multiple risk factors for neurodevelopmental vulnerability, few studies have assessed neurodevelopmental performance of Australian Aboriginal children. An important risk factor for neurodevelopmental vulnerability is prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE), which places children at risk for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD).

Aims: This study assesses neurodevelopment outcomes in a population of Australian Aboriginal children with and without PAE.

Seeking consent for research with indigenous communities: a systematic review.

Background: When conducting research with Indigenous populations consent should be sought from both individual participants and the local community. We aimed to search and summarise the literature about methods for seeking consent for research with Indigenous populations.

Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted for articles that describe or evaluate the process of seeking informed consent for research with Indigenous participants.

Prevalence of fetal alcohol syndrome in a population-based sample of children living in remote Australia: the Lililwan Project.

Aim: Aboriginal leaders concerned about high rates of alcohol use in pregnancy invited researchers to determine the prevalence of fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) and partial fetal alcohol syndrome (pFAS) in their communities.

Methods: Population-based prevalence study using active case ascertainment in children born in 2002/2003 and living in the Fitzroy Valley, in Western Australia (April 2010-November 2011) (n = 134). Socio-demographic and antenatal data, including alcohol use in pregnancy, were collected by interview with 127/134 (95%) consenting parents/care givers.

Case-control study of blink rate in Parkinson's disease under different conditions.

Standard neurology texts list a reduced blink rate as one of the clinical features of Parkinson's disease. However, there are few clinical studies which have quantified this clinical sign. Here we present the results of a quantified study in a cohort of cases and controls using a standard protocol.

Differential survival patterns among midbrain dopaminergic cells of MPTP-treated monkeys and 6OHDA-lesioned rats.

We explore the patterns of survival among dopaminergic cells of the midbrain in MPTP-treated macaque monkeys and 6OHDA-lesioned Sprague-Dawley rats. For the monkeys, animals were injected intramuscularly with MPTP for 8 days consecutively and then allowed to survive for 21 days. For the rats, 6OHDA was injected into the midbrain and then allowed to survive for either 7, 28 or 84 days.