Academic literature on the topic 'Rubella Vaccination Australia'

We reviewed measles surveillance data for 1993–2002 to determine the impact of Australia's measles control initiatives. The introduction of a second dose of measles–mumps–rubella (MMR) vaccine for 10- to 16-year-olds in 1993 was followed by marked reductions in measles notifications and hospitalizations, especially in the targeted age group. Further rate reductions were achieved following the Measles Control Campaign (MCC) in 1998, which involved a catch-up campaign for primary-school-aged children and lowering the age for the second dose of MMR vaccine to 4 years. Since the MCC, outbreaks have continued to occur, but most had a source case who was infected overseas, which suggests that indigenous transmission has been interrupted. In addition, a greater proportion of cases have been in adults although infants aged <5 years still had the highest rates. In conclusion, Australia is making good progress towards measles elimination. However, as in other countries, this progress can be sustained only by maintaining high vaccination coverage with the routine childhood vaccination schedule.

Background: The condition known as 22q11 microdeletion syndrome has a broad phenotypic spectrum, with many affected individuals experiencing mild-to-moderate immunodeficiency. Currently, there are significant variations in live vaccine practices and immunological testing prior to live vaccine administration due to safety concerns and limited established guidelines. Methods: Queensland Children’s Hospital (QCH) Child Development Unit, offers a state-wide 22q11 microdeletion clinic. This is a retrospective single-centre review, capturing the majority of children with 22q11 microdeletion in Queensland, Australia. We describe the live vaccination status of 134 children, age 0 to 18 years under our care between 2000 and 2018, adverse events following immunisation (AEFI) and the proportion of children who received additional pneumococcal coverage. An immunological investigation pathway prior to live vaccine administration is proposed. Results: Of the 134 children, 124 were eligible for live vaccinations as per the Australian National Immunisation Program: 82% had received dose one of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, 77% had completed MMR dose two and 66% had completed varicella immunisation. There were no AEFI notifications reported. Of the total sample of children, 18% received a fourth dose of conjugate pneumococcal vaccine (Prevenar 7 or 13) and 16% received a dose of Pneumovax 23 from 4 years of age. Immunology workup practices were demonstrated to vary widely prior to live vaccine administration. Most patients’ immune profiles were consistent with mild-to-moderate immunodeficiency. Conclusion: We propose an immunological investigation and vaccination pathway with the aim of providing guidance and consistency to clinicians caring for children with 22q11 microdeletion.

Abstract.The Western Pacific Region (WPR) is comprised of 37 countries such as China, Japan, Mongolia, Republic of Korea, The Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Papua-New Guinea, Australia, including Pacific Island Countries and Territories (21 countries of PICTs, approx. 3 million people) etc., with a population of 1.85 billion people. Among them, China is the largest and most populous (1.3 billion people) country of the Region. Large measles outbreaks were documented to occur in the Region. In 2003, the Regional Committee announced officially about the WPR action plan on measles elimination 2005, which, however, failed. Since 2012, WPR countries joined the WHO 2012–2020 Global Measles and Rubella Strategic Plan performing a routine measles vaccination (national immunization schedule) or within Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI). Basically, a two-dose immunization strategy is followed in the WPR countries. Since 2002, measles supplementary immunization activities (SIAs) in children were conducted in the following countries: Japan, Laos, Vietnam, Philippines, Mongolia, Cambodia, Papua New Guinea, and China. Starting from 2005, measles management was considerably improved, demonstrating by 2012 decreased measles incidence rate down to 5.9 cases per million population. In last years, a decreased measles immunization coverage in decreed population groups was noted in the WPR countries that resulted in 2013–2015 measles epidemic involving almost all regional countries. In particular, in China measles incidence rate was 19.6 cases per million population, whereas in the Vietnam Papua New Guinea and Philippines it progressively increased reaching 182.8, 345.9 and 548.0 cases per million population, respectively. Early children not vaccinated according to schedule, adolescents and young adults dominated among measles patients. It was found that measles outbreaks were due to missed vaccination and increased level of vulnerability to measles. Children under one, adolescents and young adults who did not receive a two-dose measles vaccination were in risk group. Analyzing WPR measles epidemiology demonstrated that refusal of parents to vaccinate children, poor knowledge of advantages related to vaccination, insufficient immunization coverage in immigrants, travelers, subjects changing place of residence, workers of healthcare and educational facilities require special attention. In 2017–2018 season, the following measles genotypes were found in the WPR: D8 — Australia, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Japan; Н1 — China; В3 — Philippines, Australia and Japan; D9 — Singapore, Australia, Macau (China), Malaysia and Japan, Н2 strains endemic in Vietnam. According to the WHO, measles endemic transmission has been successfully interrupted; Australia, Macau, Mongolia and Republic of Korea are being verified to eliminate measles; Hong Kong (China) and Singapore (based on available information) are ready to verify measles elimination. Thus, in the Western Pacific Region measles elimination is achievable after solving current issues such as increasing and maintaining high-level routine vaccination and conducting measles supplementary immunization campaigns in epidemically important contact clusters.

In the pre-vaccination era, rubella was regarded as only a mild exanthematous acute viral infection of children. The devastating effects of the disease were first identified in the early 1940s by an Australian ophthalmologist, and further confirmed during the 1962-65 rubella pandemic in Europe and the United States. They result from the transmission of the virus by infected pregnant women to their fetus. The resulting congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) comprises a lengthy list of abnormalities. The most common ones are deafness, ocular and cardiac defects and mental retardation. The objective of rubella vaccination, to which France has subscribed, is the elimination of CRS [1].