Prognostic significance of the urokinase plasminogen activator system in tissue and serum of dogs with appendicular osteosarcoma.

Urokinase plasminogen activator (uPA) and its receptor uPAR promote cancer invasion and metastasis and are emerging therapeutic targets in both human and canine malignancies. While their clinical significance is well-characterized in multiple human tumor types, studies investigating their roles in osteosarcoma are lacking. The objectives of this study were to characterize serum and tissue uPA/uPAR expression in dogs with osteosarcoma and assess the prognostic significance.

Assessing the Travel Health Knowledge of Australian Pharmacists.

Worldwide, the numbers of travellers are increasing, with pharmacists having the potential to play a significant role in the provision of pre-travel health services to a large number of these travellers. However, studies examining whether pharmacists have the travel health knowledge to provide these services are limited. This study thus aimed to explore the travel health knowledge of Australian pharmacists.

Immunisation Rates of Medical Students at a Tropical Queensland University.

Although medical students are at risk of contracting and transmitting communicable diseases, previous studies have demonstrated sub-optimal medical student immunity. The objective of this research was to determine the documented immunity of medical students at James Cook University to important vaccine-preventable diseases. An anonymous online survey was administered thrice in 2014, using questions with categories of immunity to determine documented evidence of immunity, as well as closed-ended questions about attitudes towards the importance of vaccination.

A Community-Directed Integrated Control Program in Queensland, Australia.

This paper describes two phases of a community-directed intervention to address strongyloidiasis in the remote Aboriginal community of Woorabinda in central Queensland, Australia. The first phase provides the narrative of a community-driven 'treat-and-test' mass drug administration (MDA) intervention that was co-designed by the Community Health Service and the community. The second phase is a description of the re-engagement of the community in order to disseminate the key factors for success in the previous MDA for , as this information was not shared or captured in the first phase.

Australian Pharmacists' Perceptions and Practices in Travel Health.

Worldwide, pharmacists are playing an increasing role in travel health, although legislation and funding can dictate the nature of this role, which varies from country to country. The aim of this study was to explore the current and potential future practices in travel health for pharmacists in Australia, as well as the perceived barriers, including training needs, for the provision of services. A survey was developed and participation was sought from a representative sample of Australian pharmacists, with descriptive statistics calculated to summarise the frequency of responses.

The Effect of Cardiac Rehabilitation in Men With and Without Prostate Cancer: A Retrospective, Comparative Cohort Study.

Background: Men with prostate cancer (PCa) may be referred to cardiac rehabilitation (CR) following a significant cardiac event, but it is unknown if these men have different effects of CR from men without a history of PCa.

Purpose: To compare the effect of CR on cardiorespiratory fitness (VOpeak), body fat percentage, and body mass index in men with and without a history of PCa.

Methods: CR participants with PCa were retrospectively compared with a cohort matched on age, clinical indication for CR, and date of referral to the CR program.

High prevalence of ascariasis on two coral atolls in the Solomon Islands.

Background: There is a deficiency in up-to-date soil-transmitted helminth (STH) prevalence data for many regions, including Oceania. This study investigated the prevalence of STH in two closely associated coral atoll communities in East Kwaio, Solomon Islands, reflective of many similar island communities throughout the Oceania region.

Methods: An STH survey, using the Kato-Katz technique, was conducted on human subjects living on two coral atolls in the Eastern Solomon Islands.

Survey of rabies vaccination status of Queensland veterinarians and veterinary students.

Background: To determine the rabies vaccination status of Queensland veterinarians and veterinary students and their perception of zoonotic risk from Australian bat lyssavirus (ABLV).

Design: Cross-sectional questionnaire surveys.

Methods: Questionnaires were sent by post in 2011 to veterinary surgeons registered in Queensland, to final-year veterinary students at James Cook University via SurveyMonkey® in 2013 and to final-year veterinary students at James Cook University and University of Queensland via SurveyMonkey® in 2014.

Implications of male circumcision for women in Papua New Guinea: a transformational grounded theory study.

Background: Male circumcision reduces the risk of female-to-male transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and is being explored for HIV prevention in Papua New Guinea (PNG). PNG has a concentrated HIV epidemic which is largely heterosexually transmitted. There are a diverse range of male circumcision and penile modification practices across PNG.

Orientation of Head Lice on Human Hosts, and Consequences for Transmission of Pediculosis: The Head Lice Movement Studies.

We performed head lice movement studies to elucidate factors influencing orientation and movement of head lice. Studies included observation of lice movements on hand and forearm at different positions of the upper limb; movements exposed to unshaved and shaved forearm; and movements with and without antennae. In 57 of 60 (95.

More bark than bite: Comparative studies are needed to determine the importance of canine zoonoses in Aboriginal communities. A critical review of published research.

The objective of this review was to identify and critique over forty years of peer-reviewed literature concerned with the transmission of canine zoonoses to Aboriginal people and determine the zoonotic organisms documented in dogs in Australian Aboriginal communities. A systematic literature search of public health, medical and veterinary databases identified 19 articles suitable for critical appraisal. Thirteen articles documented the occurrence of recognized zoonotic organisms in dogs in Aboriginal communities, including Toxocara canis, Dirofilaria immitis, Streptococcus dysgalactiae, Rickettsia felis, Sarcoptes scabiei and Giardia.

Ancylostoma ceylanicum Hookworm in the Solomon Islands.

Although hookworm is highly prevalent in the Solomon Islands, the species involved are unknown. We initiated this study in response to finding Ancylostoma ceylanicum hookworm in a peacekeeper in Australia who had returned from the Solomon Islands. Kato-Katz fecal surveys performed in 2013 and 2014 in 2 village groups in East Malaita, Solomon Islands, identified hookworm-positive samples.

Countries' response to WHO's travel recommendations during the 2013-2016 Ebola outbreak.

Objective: To determine how, during the 2013-2016 Ebola outbreak in western Africa, States Parties to the World Health Organization's (WHO) 2005 International Health Regulations (IHR) followed the IHR's international travel recommendations.

Methods: In 2015, we used the Google search engine to investigate the 196 States Parties to the 2005 IHR. Information detailing Ebola-related travel regulations or restrictions of each State Party was sourced first from official government websites and then from travel and news websites.

Adenomatous hyperplasia of the mucous glands in captive Archey's frogs (Leiopelma archeyi).

Aims: To describe the gross and light microscopic characteristics of skin lesions observed on the ventral skin of captive Archey's frogs (Leiopelma archeyi) between 2000 and 2012, and to investigate their occurrence, possible aetiology and association with survival.

Methods: Postmortem skin samples were obtained for histological evaluation from 37 frogs, with and without skin lesions, that died while in captivity at Auckland Zoo between 2000 and 2012. Four frogs with skin lesions were biopsied under general anaesthesia and samples used for both light and transmission electron microscopy.

The application of One Health concept to an outdoor problem-based learning activity for veterinary students.

Background: The One Health (OH) approach, which seeks to bring together human and animal health, is particularly suited to the effective management of zoonotic diseases across both sectors. To overcome professional silos, OH needs to be taught at the undergraduate level. Here, we describe a problem-based learning activity using the OH approach that was conducted outdoors for 3-year veterinary students in Malaysia.

A Case of Ancylostoma ceylanicum Infection Occurring in an Australian Soldier Returned from Solomon Islands.

A 26-year-old male member of the Australian Defense Force presented with a history of central abdominal pain of 4 weeks duration and peripheral eosinophilia consistent with eosinophilic enteritis. Acute hookworm disease was diagnosed as the cause. Adult worms recovered from feces after therapy with albendazole were morphologically consistent with Ancylostoma ceylanicum.

Forecasted Impact of Climate Change on Infectious Disease and Health Security in Hawaii by 2050.

Objective: Climate change is expected to cause extensive shifts in the epidemiology of infectious and vector-borne diseases. Scenarios on the effects of climate change typically attribute altered distribution of communicable diseases to a rise in average temperature and altered incidence of infectious diseases to weather extremes.

Methods: Recent evaluations of the effects of climate change on Hawaii have not explored this link.

Chronic strongyloidiasis - Don't look and you won't find.

Background: Strongyloidiasis is one of the most neglected tropical diseases and it exists in Australia. Patients may have acquired their initial infection while in an endemic area. Because of the autoinfective cycle of Strongyloides stercoralis, the causative agent, these patients may remain infected for life unless effectively treated.

Prevalence of soil-transmitted helminths in remote villages in East Kwaio, Solomon Islands.

Objective: Although soil-transmitted helminths (STH) are endemic in Solomon Islands, there are few recent reports on their prevalence. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of STH in residents of remote communities in Solomon Islands.

Methods: A cross-sectional convenience-sampled survey of residents of four adjacent villages in Malaita, Solomon Islands was performed in Atoifi and Na'au in April 2011 and in Abitona and Sifilo in April 2012.

Measles outbreak investigation in a remote area of Solomon Islands, 2014.

Objective: To describe a measles outbreak and health service response in a remote location in Malaita, Solomon Islands.

Methods: Epidemiological review of cases who presented to the Atoifi Adventist Hospital (AAH) during the outbreak period from July to December 2014. Rumour surveillance was used to gather information on unreported cases.

Mental health issues from rising sea level in a remote coastal region of the Solomon Islands: current and future.

Objective: There is little published research about mental health and climate change in the Pacific, including Solomon Islands. Solomon Islands has one of the highest rates of sea-level rise globally. The aim of this research was to document mental health issues related to sea-level rise for people in East Malaita, Solomon Islands.

Impact of an Ivermectin Mass Drug Administration on Scabies Prevalence in a Remote Australian Aboriginal Community.

Background: Scabies is endemic in many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, with 69% of infants infected in the first year of life. We report the outcomes against scabies of two oral ivermectin mass drug administrations (MDAs) delivered 12 months apart in a remote Australian Aboriginal community.

Methods: Utilizing a before and after study design, we measured scabies prevalence through population census with sequential MDAs at baseline and month 12.