Influenza outbreaks in aged-care facilities: staff vaccination and the emerging use of antiviral therapy.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Graham Tallis.
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BACKGROUND: The purpose of the present paper was to determine recent patterns of hepatitis C virus (HCV) transmission in Australia through a national system of enhanced surveillance of newly acquired hepatitis C. METHODS: Demographic, clinical, and risk behavior information on newly acquired hepatitis C cases from 1997 to 2000 was collected. Newly acquired hepatitis C included cases of HCV antibody sero-conversion within a 12 month period and acute clinical hepatitis C cases. RESULTS: Nine hundred and twelve cases of newly acquired hepatitis C were identified, representing 2.8% of all HCV notifications for this period. The majority of cases (72%) were diagnosed in people aged between 20 and 39 years. Injecting drug use was reported in the vast majority of cases (93%), with sexual transmission (2%) and tattooing (2%) reported in small numbers. HCV antibody sero-conversion was the mode of diagnosis in most cases (78%). CONCLUSIONS: Injecting drug use is the main route of HCV transmission in Australia. As only a small proportion of HCV infections are detected as newly acquired, enhanced surveillance procedures, including increased regular HCV testing of at-risk populations are required to more effectively monitor recent patterns of transmission.
The National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System (NNDSS) received 982 tuberculosis (TB) notifications in 2003, of which 947 were new cases, 33 were relapses and two were cases with unknown history. The incidence of TB in Australia has remained at a stable rate since 1985 and was 4.9 cases per 100,000 population in 2003. The high-incidence groups remain people born overseas and Indigenous Australians at 19.9 and 8.7 cases per 100,000 population, respectively. By contrast the incidence in non-Indigenous Australians was 0.9 per 100,000. Comparison of the 2003 TB notification data against the performance indicators set by National Tuberculosis Advisory Committee highlights that enhanced TB control measures should be considered among these high-risk groups.
In 2002, there were 1,028 cases of tuberculosis (TB) reported to the National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System, of which 997 were new cases, 30 were relapses and 1 unknown. The incidence rate of TB in Australia in 2002 was 5.2 cases per 100,000 population. The highest incidence of TB was reported in people born overseas (20.2 cases per 100,000 population), followed by Indigenous Australians (8.5 cases per 100,000 population). By contrast, the incidence rate of TB in the nonIndigenous Australian-born population was 1.1 cases per 100,000 population. This pattern of TB incidence rates amongst the sub-populations of Australia has been observed for over 10 years. The rates were evaluated against the performance indicators set by the National Tuberculosis Advisory Committee to ensure that Australia's record of TB control is maintained and improved.
In 2001, there were 997 cases of tuberculosis (TB) reported to the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System, of which, 967 were new cases of TB and 30 cases were relapses. The incidence rate of TB in Australia in 2001 was 5.1 cases per 100,000 population. The highest incidence of TB was reported in people born overseas (19.3 cases per 100,000 population), followed by Indigenous Australians (9.8 cases per 100,000 population). In contrast, the incidence rate of TB in the non-Indigenous Australian-born population was 1.0 cases per 100,000 population. This pattern of TB incidence rates amongst the sub-populations of Australia has been observed for over 10 years. Eighty-six per cent of TB cases completed treatment in 2001. Treatment was unsuccessful in 7 cases and only 22 cases defaulted. The National Tuberculosis Advisory Committee has published a National Strategic Plan with performance indicators to ensure that this enviable record of TB control is maintained and improved.