Marked increase in community-associated methicillin-resistant infections, Western Australia, 2004-2018.

This study presents enhanced surveillance data from 2004 to 2018 for all community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) specimens collected in Western Australia (WA), and describes the changing epidemiology over this period. A total of 57 557 cases were reviewed. Annual incidence rates increased from 86.

Respiratory Illness in a Piggery Associated with the First Identified Outbreak of Swine Influenza in Australia: Assessing the Risk to Human Health and Zoonotic Potential.

Australia was previously believed to be free of enzootic swine influenza viruses due strict quarantine practices and use of biosecure breeding facilities. The first proven Australian outbreak of swine influenza occurred in Western Australian in 2012, revealing an unrecognized zoonotic risk, and a potential future pandemic threat. A public health investigation was undertaken to determine whether zoonotic infections had occurred and to reduce the risk of further transmission between humans and swine.

Recurrence of Clostridium difficile infection in the Western Australian population.

Clostridium difficile, the most common cause of hospital-associated diarrhoea in developed countries, presents major public health challenges. The high clinical and economic burden from C. difficile infection (CDI) relates to the high frequency of recurrent infections caused by either the same or different strains of C.

Impact of participation in a surgical site infection surveillance network: results from a large international cohort study.

Background: Surveillance of surgical site infections (SSIs) is a core component of effective infection control practices, though its impact has not been quantified on a large scale.

Aim: To determine the time-trend of SSI rates in surveillance networks.

Methods: SSI surveillance networks provided procedure-specific data on numbers of SSIs and operations, stratified by hospitals' year of participation in the surveillance, to capture length of participation as an exposure.