Predicting child development and school readiness, at age 5, for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children in Australia's Northern Territory.

Background: Positive early development is critical in shaping children's lifelong health and wellbeing. Identifying children at risk of poor development is important in targeting early interventions to children and families most in need of support. We aimed to develop a predictive model that could inform early support for vulnerable children.

An evaluation of the quality of ear health services for Aboriginal children living in remote Australia: a cascade of care analysis.

Background: In the Northern Territory (NT) the prevalence of otitis media (OM) in young Aboriginal children living in remote communities has persisted at around 90% over the last few decades. OM-associated hearing loss can cause developmental delay and adversely impact life course trajectories. This study examined the 5-year trends in OM prevalence and quality of ear health services in remote NT communities.

Pathways to school success: Self-regulation and executive function, preschool attendance and early academic achievement of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children in Australia's Northern Territory.

Background: With the pending implementation of the Closing the Gap 2020 recommendations, there is an urgent need to better understand the contributing factors of, and pathways to positive educational outcomes for both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children. This deeper understanding is particularly important in the Northern Territory (NT) of Australia, in which the majority of Aboriginal children lived in remote communities and have language backgrounds other than English (i.e.

A community-based service enhancement model of training and employing Ear Health Facilitators to address the crisis in ear and hearing health of Aboriginal children in the Northern Territory, the Hearing for Learning Initiative (the HfLI): study protocol for a stepped-wedge cluster randomised trial.

Background: Almost all Aboriginal children in remote communities have persistent bilateral otitis media affecting hearing and learning throughout early childhood and school years, with consequences for social and educational outcomes, and later employment opportunities. Current primary health care and specialist services do not have the resources to meet the complex needs of these children.

Method/design: This stepped-wedge cluster randomised trial will allocate 18 communities to one of five 6-monthly intervention start dates.

The impact of hearing impairment on early academic achievement in Aboriginal children living in remote Australia: a data linkage study.

Background: The prevalence of otitis media (OM) and related hearing loss has remained persistently high among some groups of Australian Aboriginal children who are also reported to have poor academic outcomes. The general literature remains inconclusive about the association between OM-related hearing loss and academic performance in primary school. This study aimed to investigate this association in Aboriginal children living in the Northern Territory (NT) of Australia.

Impact of hearing impairment on early childhood development in Australian Aboriginal children: A data linkage study.

Aim: To investigate the association between hearing impairment (HI) and measures of early childhood development in Aboriginal children at age 5 years.

Methods: An observational cohort study (n = 1037) of children aged 4.0-7.

Data linkage and computerised algorithmic coding to enhance individual clinical care for Aboriginal people living with chronic hepatitis B in the Northern Territory of Australia - Is it feasible?

Background: Chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is endemic in the Aboriginal population of Australia's Northern Territory (NT). However, many people's hepatitis B virus (HBV) status remains unknown.

Objective: 1.

The link between hearing impairment and child maltreatment among Aboriginal children in the Northern Territory of Australia: is there an opportunity for a public health approach in child protection?

Background: International studies provide evidence of an association between child disabilities, including hearing impairment (HI), and child maltreatment. There are high prevalences of ear disease with associated HI, and child maltreatment among Australian Aboriginal children, but the link between HI and child maltreatment is unknown. This study investigates the association between HI and child maltreatment for Aboriginal children living in the Northern Territory (NT) of Australia.

The Impact of Hearing Impairment on the Life Trajectories of Aboriginal Children in Remote Australia: Protocol for the Hearing Loss in Kids Project.

Background: Previous studies have reported a high prevalence of chronic otitis media (OM) and hearing impairment (HI) in Aboriginal children in the Northern Territory (NT) of Australia. Children affected by these disorders are believed to be at increased risk for adverse outcomes in early childhood development, school attendance, academic performance, and child maltreatment and youth offending. However, to date, there have been no studies quantifying the association between HI and these outcomes in this population.

The impact of hearing impairment on Aboriginal children's school attendance in remote Northern Territory: a data linkage study.

Objective: To investigate the association between hearing impairment (HI) and Year 1 school attendance in Aboriginal children in the Northern Territory (NT) of Australia.

Methods: Observational cohort study (n=3,744) by analysing linked individual-level information for Aboriginal children from the NT Government school attendance records, NT Perinatal Register and Remote Hearing Assessment dataset, and community level data for relative remoteness, socioeconomic disadvantage and housing crowdedness.

Results: Children with unilateral hearing loss, mild HI and moderate or worse HI had significantly lower Year 1 attendance than those with normal hearing, attending 5.

Hearing and justice: The link between hearing impairment in early childhood and youth offending in Aboriginal children living in remote communities of the Northern Territory, Australia.

Background: High prevalence of chronic middle ear disease has persisted in Australian Aboriginal children, and the related hearing impairment (HI) has been implicated in a range of social outcomes. This study investigated the association between HI in early childhood and youth offending.

Method: This was a retrospective cohort study of 1533 Aboriginal children (born between 1996 and 2001) living in remote Northern Territory communities.

An audit on the management and outcomes of infants at risk of congenital syphilis in the Top End of the Northern Territory, Australia, 2005-2013.

Introduction: Congenital syphilis (CS) remains a condition of serious clinical and public health importance, particularly in the Aboriginal populations of northern Australia, which have seen a recent resurgence in cases. In 2005, the Northern Territory (NT) Centre for Disease Control (CDC) published guidelines for management of infants at risk of CS. We audited the management and outcomes of infants at risk of CS who were born between 2005 and 2013 in the Darwin and Katherine regions of the NT.

HIV incidence in Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations in Australia: a population-level observational study.

Background: Australia has set a national target of ending HIV by 2020, achieving this will require the inclusion of priority populations (eg, Indigenous Australians) in strategies to reach elimination. To assist in evaluating the target of elimination, we analysed HIV notification data for Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.

Methods: Using the National HIV Registry at The Kirby Institute at UNSW, Sydney, NSW, Australia, we collated and analysed annual HIV notification data for 1996-2015.

Molecular Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance for Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Northern Territory, Australia.

Neisseria gonorrhoeae antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a globally recognized health threat; new strategies are needed to enhance AMR surveillance. The Northern Territory of Australia is unique in that 2 different first-line therapies, based primarily on geographic location, are used for gonorrhea treatment. We tested 1,629 N.

Primary health clinic toilet/bathroom surface swab sampling can indicate community profile of sexually transmitted infections.

Background: The microbiome of built environment surfaces is impacted by the presence of humans. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that analysis of surface swabs from clinic toilet/bathroom yields results correlated with sexually transmitted infection (STI) notifications from corresponding human populations. We extended a previously reported study in which surfaces in toilet/bathroom facilities in primary health clinics in the Australian Northern Territory (NT) were swabbed then tested for nucleic acid from the STI agents and .

The Molecular Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in Australia: A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Study, 2012.

Background:  Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) by Neisseria gonorrhoeae is considered a serious global threat.

Methods:  In this nationwide study, we used MassARRAY iPLEX genotyping technology to examine the epidemiology of N. gonorrhoeae and associated AMR in the Australian population.

Why are men less tested for sexually transmitted infections in remote Australian Indigenous communities? A mixed-methods study.

Gender disparities in testing rates for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) have been identified as one potential factor sustaining high rates of STIs and repeat infections in the Northern Territory of Australia, especially in remote Indigenous communities. The study aimed to investigate the reasons for these disparities utilising a mixed-method study design. We conducted an audit on client information at a remote community health clinic, focus-group discussions with young men in the same community and interviews with experienced remote area clinicians.

Community and clinic-based screening for curable sexually transmissible infections in a high prevalence setting in Australia: a retrospective longitudinal analysis of clinical service data from 2006 to 2009.

Unlabelled: Background In response to the high prevalence of sexually transmissible infections (STIs) in many central Australian Aboriginal communities, a community-wide screening program was implemented to supplement routine primary health care (PHC) clinic testing. The uptake and outcomes of these two approaches were compared.

Methods: Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) and Neisseria gonorrhoeae (NG) community and clinic screening data for Aboriginal people aged 15-34 years, 2006-2009, were used.

Notification and management of congenital syphilis in the Northern Territory 2009 to 2014.

Objective: To determine whether cases of congenital syphilis in the Northern Territory between 2009 and 2014 were correctly notified based on probable or confirmed case criteria stipulated by the Communicable Diseases Network Australia (CDNA).

Methods: Pregnant women with positive syphilis serology defined as reactive treponemal test and rapid plasma reagin titre ≥1:8 were identified from the Northern Territory Syphilis Register Information System. Risk classification was performed based on local guidelines, and CDNA criteria for probable/confirmed cases of congenital syphilis were applied to determine whether cases were appropriately notified.

Exploring the Benefits of Molecular Testing for Gonorrhoea Antibiotic Resistance Surveillance in Remote Settings.

Background: Surveillance for gonorrhoea antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is compromised by a move away from culture-based testing in favour of more convenient nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) tests. We assessed the potential benefit of a molecular resistance test in terms of the timeliness of detection of gonorrhoea AMR.

Methods And Findings: An individual-based mathematical model was developed to describe the transmission of gonorrhoea in a remote Indigenous population in Australia.

Echocardiographic screening for rheumatic heart disease in high and low risk Australian children.

Background: Echocardiographic screening for rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is becoming more widespread, but screening studies to date have used different echocardiographic definitions. The World Heart Federation has recently published new criteria for the echocardiographic diagnosis of RHD. We aimed to establish the prevalence of RHD in high-risk Indigenous Australian children using these criteria and to compare the findings with a group of Australian children at low risk for RHD.

Identifying national health research priorities in Timor-Leste through a scoping review of existing health data.

Health research is crucial to understand a country's needs and to improve health outcomes. We conducted a scoping review and analysis of existing health data in Timor-Leste to identify the health research priorities of the country. Published and unpublished health research in Timor-Leste from 2001 to 2011 that reported objectives, methods and results were identified.

Epidemiology of chlamydia and gonorrhoea among Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, 2000-2009.

Objectives: To assess notification trends for chlamydia and gonorrhoea infections in Indigenous Australians compared with non-Indigenous Australians in 2000-2009.

Design And Setting: We assessed trends in national notification rates using univariate Poisson regression and summary rate ratios.

Main Outcome Measures: Crude notification rates and summary rate ratios, by Indigenous status, sex, age and area of residence.