Risk Factors and Clinical Prognosis Associated With RSV-ALRI Intensive Care Unit Admission in Children <2 Years of Age: A Multicenter Study.

Background: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the leading cause of acute lower respiratory infections (ALRIs) in children <2 years of age. Currently, there are limited data on risk factors for very severe RSV-ALRI requiring intensive care unit (ICU) admission.

Methods: We conducted a case-control study of children <2 years old admitted with RSV-ALRI to the Sydney Children's Hospital Network, comprising 2 large tertiary pediatric hospitals.

Variation in clinical practice guidelines for use of palivizumab in preventing severe respiratory syncytial viral (RSV) disease in high-risk infants.

Background: Uniformity and compliance with clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) for use of palivizumab in preventing severe respiratory syncytial viral infection in Australian high-risk infants remain unclear.

Methods: An online survey was conducted across the Australian and New Zealand Neonatal Network (ANZNN) to determine clinical practices around palivizumab. A literature search was also performed to identify and compare national and international guidelines.

COVID-19 in New South Wales children during 2021: severity and clinical spectrum.

Objectives: To describe the severity and clinical spectrum of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in children during the 2021 New South Wales outbreak of the Delta variant of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

Design, Setting: Prospective cohort study in three metropolitan Sydney local health districts, 1 June - 31 October 2021.

Participants: Children under 16 years of age with positive SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid test results admitted to hospital or managed by the Sydney Children's Hospital Network (SCHN) virtual care team.

RSV Epidemiology in Australia Before and During COVID-19.

COVID-19 public health measures altered respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) epidemiology. We examined age-stratified trends in RSV-related disease in Australian children in 2020 compared with previous years.

Respiratory Syncytial Virus-attributable Deaths in a Major Pediatric Hospital in New South Wales, Australia, 1998-2018.

Background: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a leading cause of acute lower respiratory tract infection and an important contributor to child mortality. In this study, we estimated the frequency and described the clinical features of RSV-attributable deaths in Australian children.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective observational study of RSV-associated deaths in hospitalized children <16 years of age over a 21-year period (1998-2018) in a pediatric tertiary/quaternary referral hospital in New South Wales (NSW), Australia.

Respiratory Syncytial Virus-Associated Neurologic Complications in Children: A Systematic Review and Aggregated Case Series.

Objectives: To describe the features and frequency of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)-associated severe acute neurologic disease in children.

Study Design: We performed a systematic review of the literature to identify reports of severe acute neurologic complications associated with acute RSV infection in children aged <15 years (PROSPERO Registration CRD42019125722). Main outcomes included neurologic, clinical, and demographic features of cases and the frequency of disease.

Respiratory syncytial virus subtype circulation and associated disease severity at an Australian paediatric referral hospital, 2014-2018.

Aim: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a leading cause of acute lower respiratory tract infections in children and the development of vaccines to protect at-risk groups is a global priority. The aim of this study was to describe RSV subtype circulation patterns and associated disease severity to inform on potential impact of an RSV-specific prevention strategy.

Methods: Single-centre retrospective observational study of children aged <16 years with laboratory-confirmed RSV infection from 2014 to 2018 inclusive.

Paediatric Active Enhanced Disease Surveillance (PAEDS) 2017 and 2018: Prospective hospital-based surveillance for serious paediatric conditions.

Introduction: The Paediatric Active Enhanced Disease Surveillance (PAEDS) network is a hospital-based active surveillance system employing prospective case ascertainment for selected serious childhood conditions, particularly vaccine-preventable diseases and potential adverse events following immunisation (AEFI). This report presents surveillance data for 2017 and 2018.

Methods: Specialist nurses screened hospital admissions, emergency department (ED) records, laboratory and other data on a daily basis in seven paediatric tertiary referral hospitals across Australia to identify children with the conditions under surveillance.

Respiratory syncytial virus-associated hospitalisations in Australia, 2006-2015.

Objective: To estimate rates of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)-associated hospitalisation across the age spectrum, and to identify groups at particular risk of serious RSV-associated disease.

Design, Setting And Participants: Retrospective review of National Hospital Morbidity Database data for all RSV-associated hospitalisations in Australia, 2006-2015.

Main Outcomes And Measures: RSV-coded hospitalisation rates by age, sex, Indigenous status, jurisdiction, and seasonality (month and year); hospital length of stay; in-hospital deaths.

Paediatric Active Enhanced Disease Surveillance (PAEDS) annual report 2016: Prospective hospital-based surveillance for serious paediatric conditions.

Introduction: The Paediatric Active Enhanced Disease Surveillance (PAEDS) network is a hospital-based active surveillance system employing prospective case ascertainment for selected serious childhood conditions, particularly vaccine preventable diseases and potential adverse events following immunisation (AEFI). PAEDS data is used to better understand these conditions, inform policy and practice under the National Immunisation Program, and enable rapid public health responses for certain conditions of public health importance. PAEDS enhances data available from other Australian surveillance systems by providing prospective, detailed clinical and laboratory information on children with selected conditions.

Evaluation of national guidelines for bronchiolitis: AGREEments and controversies.

Aim: Bronchiolitis is a common respiratory illness and is a leading cause of hospitalisation in infancy. We aimed to appraise three recent national bronchiolitis guidelines produced by the Australasian Paediatric Research in Emergency Departments International Collaborative, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence in the UK and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Methods: A group of final-year medical students and one senior clinician used the AGREE II tool to appraise each guideline in two stages.