Changes in the epidemiology of gastroenteritis in a paediatric short stay unit following the introduction of rotavirus immunisation.

Aim: Acute gastroenteritis (AGE) has been a significant component of the clinical load in the short stay unit (SSU) at the Royal Children's Hospital (RCH) since its establishment in 2004. Since the introduction of routine rotavirus immunisation in Australia in 2007 there has been a clinical impression of a substantial reduction in AGE managed in the SSU. This study aimed to examine changes in the epidemiology of AGE in the SSU, and RCH overall, between 2005 and 2009 and explore whether this reflects a change specifically in AGE due to rotavirus.

First probable Australian cases of human infection with Rickettsia felis (cat-flea typhus).

Human infection with Rickettsia felis has been reported in most parts of the world, and R. felis has recently been confirmed in cat fleas in Western Australia. The clinical presentations of R.

Reduction in rotavirus-associated acute gastroenteritis following introduction of rotavirus vaccine into Australia's National Childhood vaccine schedule.

Introduction: : Rotavirus vaccines were introduced into the funded Australian National Immunization Program (NIP) in July 2007. Due to purchasing arrangements, individual states and territories chose either a 2-dose RV1 (Rotarix, GSK) regimen or 3-dose RV5 (Rotateq, Merck/CSL) regimen. This allowed comparison of both vaccines in similar populations with high infant vaccination coverage.