Dexamethasone treatment safe in surgery

Profs Tomas Corcoran, Allen Cheng, Paul Myles,
A/Prof Trish Peel and Ms Karen Goulding explain the

research which has shown that dexamethasone is safe in
surgery. See NEJM study & webinar video 

The steroid drug, dexamethasone, is often given by anaesthetists during surgery.  However, because of its effects on the immune system there has been growing concern that it may increase the risk of wound infections, particularly in vulnerable populations such as patients with diabetes.

PADDI Trial results webinar: 6 May, 7-8 am

The Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists Clinical Trials Network (ANZCA CTN) and Monash University are delighted to invite you to a virtual public webinar announcing the results of the Perioperative Administration of Dexamethasone and Infection (PADDI) trial. The webinar will be held on Thursday 6 May, 2021 at 7-8am AEST. (Note, flyer with international times here). More information and register here.

Flu virus impact: No telling how it will go

Heatmap of incidence of 2017 flu season, from FluTracking.
Your participation welcomed in the joint Australia - New
Zealand flu tracking survey: join here

by Anne Crawford

With winter approaching and the influenza (flu) season hovering health authorities and others are wondering if this year’s flu season will be a repeat of the deadly one that occurred last year. It’s a question being asked a lot lately of Professor Allen Cheng, infectious diseases expert at The Alfred Hospital. 

Indeed, Professor Cheng, who runs part of Australia’s hospital-based flu surveillance system FluCAN, is perennially asked if he can predict what will happen in the upcoming season. His answer is the same every year: no, he can’t.

Bacterial resistance raises doubts about pneumonia antibiotic use

Professor Allen Cheng is an infectious diseases physician
at the Alfred

by Anne Crawford

Monash University scientists reviewing an antibiotic commonly used to treat pneumonia have concluded that it may no longer be reliable as a monotherapy for serious infections due to bacterial resistance.

Macrolide antibiotics, which include erythromycin, clarithromycin and azithromycin, are an important class of antimicrobials for pneumococcal diseases.

However, a report by Professor Allen Cheng from the Department of Infectious Diseases, and Senior Adjunct lecturer Dr Adam Jenney found that macrolide,  most commonly used in combination with effective antibiotics such as penicillin or cephalosporins, may not be reliable as monotherapy for serious pneumococcal disease.

Studies urge greater flu vaccine uptake

"Be like me, be flu free" says the bandaid

of 2017 Day of Immunology vaccination café
participant Dr Dimitra Zotos

by Anne Crawford

As the flu season sets in, studies by Monash University researchers have reinforced the need for at-risk groups to have influenza vaccinations.

The two studies were led by Professor Allen Cheng, (Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine), and Associate Professor Tom Kotsimbos (Department of Respiratory Medicine) in association with other researchers who are part of FluCAN (the Influenza Complications Alert Network), a sentinel surveillance program of 17 hospitals operating throughout Australia.

Fascination with 'bugs' leads to cystic fibrosis research

Dr Katherine Langan presenting at the
2016 CCS postgraduate symposium

by Anne Crawford

As a child, Katherine Langan was intrigued by bugs – but not the type you caught in jars. Dr Langan recalls being fascinated by infectious diseases since she was about 12 witnessing the advent, then spread of HIV/AIDs in Australia. Even then she wondered what could be done about it. 

Dr Langan’s interest in ‘bugs’ took her to Liverpool to study tropical medicine in 2011 and to Bangladesh to see first hand the effects of malaria in one of the country’s major teaching hospitals. The hospital was an eye-opener: there was no running water, no electricity for much of the day, patients had to pay for everything they used and were washed and fed by their families. Dr Langan watched as malaria killed young people who arrived too late to be effectively treated.

Now an infectious diseases specialist at The Alfred undertaking a PhD at the Central Clinical School, her preoccupation is with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, specifically in people with cystic fibrosis.

Annual report card rates flu vaccine as ‘moderately’ effective

Flu monitoring continues year round.
Image: Fightflu

by Anne Crawford

This year’s flu season in Australia might be winding down but for researchers investigating and monitoring the highly contagious and potentially deadly disease, work continues year-round.

Monash University researchers Professor Allen Cheng, from the Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine and the Respiratory Medicine Laboratory’s Associate Professor Tom Kotsimbos, are part of FluCAN (the Influenza Complications Alert Network), a sentinel hospital-based surveillance program operating throughout Australia.

Flu vaccine reduces risk of hospitalisation

By Dr Jodie Abramovitch

Professor Allen Cheng (left) and
Associate Professor Tom Kotsimbos (right)

Vaccination against influenza infection is recommended in high risk groups including the elderly, pregnant women and those with chronic illnesses. The flu vaccine is primarily aimed at reducing the severe health consequences of infection such as hospitalisation and death. However, most previous studies on the influenza vaccine were performed in healthy adults and have looked at protection against mild influenza infection rather than severe complications.

Monash study identifies factors underlying ineffective response to HIV treatment

Professor Jennifer Hoy

A new study has looked at the factors which may decrease the chances of HIV treatment being successful. Patients with HIV are treated with antiretroviral therapy (ART), which has proven effective at improving their long-term outcomes and survival. The study, by A/Prof Allen Cheng, Dr Olga Vujovic and Prof Jennifer Hoy with the Monash Department of Infectious Diseases, aimed to discover the factors which lead to virological failure. See more detail at SPHPM blog story.