Research Portfolio

Rapid diagnosis of sepsis in acutely ill children

Life threatening bacterial infections such as sepsis are a leading cause of childhood mortality. International authorities recognise the urgent need for better recognition, diagnosis, and management of children with sepsis. Children in regional and remote settings are at particular risk for late or inaccurate diagnosis resulting in worse outcomes. In this study, the researchers are testing the feasibility, performance, time-to-diagnosis, and cost impact of applying the most advanced genomics-based sepsis diagnostic tools. This could lead to better treatment of infections, reduce unnecessary antibiotic use, shorten hospital length of stay, improve patient outcomes, and allow patients and families to be managed…

Principal Investigator: Dr Peter Snelling
Amount Awarded: $100,000
Institution: Queensland Children's Hospital

Fibrinogen Early In Severe Trauma in children studY (FEISTY Junior)

Traumatic injuries in children are a leading cause of death and disability in Australia. In high income countries, 40% of child deaths are because of traumatic injuries. Fibrinogen is one of the key clotting factors that need to be replaced in severe traumatic bleeding. Currently, fibrinogen is replaced using cryoprecipitate; a blood product obtained from healthy volunteer donors. This is a precious resource that is stored frozen in the blood bank; it can take a long time to administer and place significant strain on blood banks. Fibrinogen concentrate (FC) is an alternative product used to assist in blood clotting. It…

Principal Investigator: Dr Christa Bell
Amount Awarded: $100,000
Institution: Gold Coast University Hospital

How are we treating severe childhood asthma in Australasia?

Most children with asthma presenting to an emergency department (ED) are managed with inhaled medications and oral steroids. Infrequently, those children that are very unwell may require assistance with their breathing, or intravenous medication. Currently, there is minimal information to guide clinicians on which treatment to choose for severe acute asthma. It is not known which is most effective and all have side-effects. Studies demonstrate significant variation in practice, while existing Australasian data is approximately 10 years old. This project aims to determine current management practices for children with severe acute asthma and/or wheeze; how common the condition is, how…

Principal Investigator: Dr Ben Lawton
Amount Awarded: $69,444
Institution: Logan Hospital

Randomised controlled trial of two antidote regimens for paracetamol overdose

Paracetamol is the commonest medications taken in overdose and is the leading cause of acute liver failure in the developed world. The antidote, acetylcysteine, which replenishes liver glutathione was developed in the 1970’s. However the regimen (20 hours duration) was never subjected to either a randomised controlled trial or any dose ranging studies. The regimen gives a large loading dose and the remainder of the infusion (20 hours) is given to mirror the time taken for paracetamol to be cleared by the liver. This time is only an average and depends on the degree of liver damage. For normal livers…

Principal Investigator: Dr Katherine Isoardi & Dr Colin Page
Amount Awarded: $43,778
Institution: Princess Alexandra Hospital

Point of care lung ultrasound in paediatric respiratory presentations

Emergency department physicians with no prior specialised ultrasound training can be taught to reliably identify bronchiolitis, pleural effusions, pneumothorax and pneumonia, in children presenting with cough, shortness of breath and hypoxia through the use of lung ultrasound after a brief training. In this study, we are assessing the effectiveness of trainees performing a lung ultrasound examination of children, capturing their images and recording their findings. No clinical decisions will be made based on these findings without consultation with the consultant on duty. We will consider to what extent the teaching was successful and try to determine whether the teaching resulted…

Principal Investigator: Dr Volha Pankevich
Amount Awarded: $8608
Institution: Logan Hospital