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Immunisation

Immunisation is the most effective way of protecting your child against a range of serious illnesses, including measles, hepatitis B and whooping cough. All vaccines used in Australia undergo stringent testing and ongoing monitoring.

Vaccination

Vaccination is the injection of an inactivated bacteria or virus into the body. This simulated infection allows an individual's immune system to develop an adaptive immunity for protection against that type of illness. When a sufficiently large percentage of a population has been vaccinated, this results in herd immunity.

Whooping Cough

Whooping cough (pertussis) is a highly contagious respiratory infection which causes a severe cough and can be particularly dangerous to babies under a year old. Vaccination is the best way to reduce the risk of whooping cough.

Infectious Disease Implementation Research

The Infectious Disease Implementation Research Team is a multi-disciplinary group researching the best way to implement infectious disease prevention and treatment strategies to improve the wellbeing of children and teenagers.

World-first nasal spray whooping cough vaccine aims to protect young bubs

Tiny babies could soon have much-needed protection from community transmission of potentially deadly whooping cough thanks to a world-first nasal spray vaccine being trialed at The Kids Research Institute Australia.

Whither pertussis?

This article discusses the rising prevalence of pertussis disease in countries which have switched to acellular vaccines.

Predictors of Disease Severity in Children Hospitalized for Pertussis during an Epidemic

This study aimed to determine factors associated with severe pertussis in hospitalized children during an epidemic using a novel pertussis severity scoring...

Antibody and cell-mediated immunity to pertussis 4 years after monovalent acellular pertussis vaccine at birth

In the longest reported follow-up of infants who received aP vaccine at birth, we found a trend to lower PT IgG antibodies post booster compared with receipt...

Duration of protection after first dose of acellular pertussis vaccine in infants

Without a booster dose, the effectiveness of 3 doses waned more rapidly from 2 to 4 years of age than previously documented for children >6 years of age who...

Immune impacts of infant whole-cell and acellular pertussis vaccination on co-administered vaccines

We compared the effect of a heterologous wP/aP/aP primary series (hereafter mixed wP/aP) versus a homologous aP/aP/aP primary schedule (hereafter aP-only) on antibody responses to co-administered vaccine antigens in infants and toddlers.