Centre for Paediatric and Perinatal Infection Research
The Centre for Paediatric and perinatal Infection Research (CPIR) is a clinical and laboratory research program based at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead. We are affiliated with the University of Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute and work closely with national disease surveillance networks including the Paediatric Active Enhanced Disease Surveillance (PAEDS), National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS) and Australian Paediatric Surveillance Unit (APSU).
Objectives
Our research aims to find new ways to prevent and treat patients with infectious disease and syndromes. We aim to reduce infectious disease burden through:
- Active surveillance to detect severe and emerging paediatric and perinatal infections,
- Developing and testing novel diagnostics and therapies to improve clinical care of these infections, and;
- Engaging with patients and their family, health care professionals and the wider community about risk reduction including vaccination, disease recognition, investigation, and treatment.
Impact
- We showed the unrecognised burden of influenza associated neurological disease in children that influenced the inclusion of influenza vaccine for those aged under 5 years on the National Immunisation Program.
- We showed that up to 99% of COVID-19 cases in children do not require hospitalisation, and most children recover completely following COVID-19.
- We showed that immune responses to COVID-19 are different in children compared to adults and that COVID-19 vaccination may be important for children because their ability to rapidly clear the virus means they do not form long term immunity like adults after natural infection.
- We established that testing body sites beyond the central nervous system such as blood, nose/throat, or rectum could improve diagnosis of encephalitis causes. Additionally, we found the duration and characteristics of altered behaviour in childhood encephalitis could indicate non-infectious (immune-mediated) cause.
- Our research identified that children with chronic diseases in hospitals are at a higher risk of RSV attributed death, and as such should be considered for targeted for prevention of RSV disease.
Collaborators
For enquires
title
A/Prof Philip Britton
title
Dr Gemma Saravanos
Email
Send email
Biography
Post Doctoral Fellow and Academic Fellow - Associate Lecturer
Related Links
title
Rebecca Burrell
More team members
- Shirley Wong - Research Nurse
- Dr Katherine Phan - Research Assistant