Australia seems to be focusing on boosters for people aged 75 and over, with its latest recommendations. But that may change.
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Burnet Institute is an Australian-based medical research institute that combines research in the laboratory and the field with public health action to improve health equity in Australia and internationally.
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How are people with long COVID faring two years after their initial infection? Many have recovered. Some still struggle with symptoms – this is more likely for those who were initially hospitalised.
As much as we don’t want it to be, as much as it is off the front pages, COVID is still very much with us. We can end this pandemic, if we choose to.
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We found most governments were ill-prepared, too slow to act, paid too little attention to the most vulnerable, and were hampered by low public trust and an epidemic of misinformation.
So far in 2022, more than 12,000 Australians have died with COVID, six times the number of deaths in the previous two years.
Polio cases in the US, UK and Israel remind us that this could also happen in Australia. Here’s what we should watch out for.
As monkeypox vaccination programs roll out and health authorities work to reduce the spread of the virus, progress is lagging on renaming it.
Direct-acting antivirals can cure hepatitis C in eight to 12 weeks. But while the rate of uptake in Australia has slowed, a greater proportion of those undertaking treatment are in prison.
In the first two years of the pandemic, Australia’s COVID elimination strategy was among the most effective in the world. Now we rank second in the world for the most cases per capita.
We modelled the impact small reductions in transmission would have on COVID deaths. We found a 20% drop could save the lives of 500 Victorians this year, or 2,000 people nationally.
We looked at almost 300,000 births and found those mothers in the private system were more likely to have a caesarean – even if they didn’t really want or need one.
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Sexually transmitted infections and bacterial vaginosis can provide ideal conditions for HIV infection in women. A new test aims to detect these conditions even when women don’t show symptoms.
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Authors
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Senior Research Officer, Burnet Institute
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Mathematical Modeller, Burnet Institute
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Burnet PNG Country Director; Health Security and Pandemic Preparedness Lead; TB Public Health Physician, Burnet Institute
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Theme Leader, Antiviral Immunity, Burnet Institute
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Research Fellow, National Drug Research Institute, Curtin University; UNSW ; Burnet Institute
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Senior Research Fellow; Co-Head, Global Adolescent Health Working Group, Burnet Institute
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Head of Public Health, Co-Head HIV Elimination Program, Head of Justice Health Research, Burnet Institute
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Head of Young People's Health Research, Burnet Institute
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Associate Principal Research Fellow, Burnet Institute
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Senior Research Fellow, Burnet Institute
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Head of Modelling and Biostatistics, Burnet Institute
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Professor, National Drug Research Institute, Curtin University and Burnet Institute, Burnet Institute
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Research Officer, Burnet Institute
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Senior Research Fellow, Burnet Institute
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Associate Professor and Chief Health Officer - COVID and Health Emergencies, Burnet Institute