Biomaterial Database

Epidemiology of Haemophilus influenzae type b disease in Australia and New Zealand. 1991

G L Gilbert

Department of Microbiology and Infectious Disease, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.

The epidemiology of infection due to Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) varies in different groups of Australian and New Zealand children. In most populations the annual case attack rate is approximately 40-60 per 100,000 children under 5 years of age and epiglottitis accounts for a relatively high but variable proportion of cases, which partly depends on case definition. Overall, nearly 50% of cases occur in children over 2 years of age. Among Aboriginal children in the Northern Territory, the epidemiology is strikingly different. The annual case attack rate is approximately 450 per 100,000 children under 5 years and varies in different geographical areas. Most cases occur in the first year of life (40% at less than 6 months) and epiglottitis is rare. The case attack rate in non-Aboriginal children in the Northern Territory (88 per 100,000) is significantly less than in Aboriginal children but higher than elsewhere. The differences between Maori and Caucasian children in New Zealand are less marked. Different immunization strategies may be required for children in different populations within Australia and New Zealand.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007223	Infant	A child between 1 and 23 months of age.	Infants
D009517	New South Wales	A state in southeastern Australia. Its capital is Sydney. It was discovered by Captain Cook in 1770 and first settled at Botany Bay by marines and convicts in 1788. It was named by Captain Cook who thought its coastline resembled that of South Wales. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p840 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p377)
D009520	New Zealand	A group of islands in the southwest Pacific. Its capital is Wellington. It was discovered by the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman in 1642 and circumnavigated by Cook in 1769. Colonized in 1840 by the New Zealand Company, it became a British crown colony in 1840 until 1907 when colonial status was terminated. New Zealand is a partly anglicized form of the original Dutch name Nieuw Zeeland, new sea land, possibly with reference to the Dutch province of Zeeland. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p842 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p378)
D002675	Child, Preschool	A child between the ages of 2 and 5.	Children, Preschool,Preschool Child,Preschool Children
D006192	Haemophilus Infections	Infections with bacteria of the genus HAEMOPHILUS.	Hemophilus Infections,Haemophilus influenzae Infection,Haemophilus influenzae Type b Infection,Hib Infection,Infections, Haemophilus,Infections, Hemophilus,Haemophilus Infection,Haemophilus influenzae Infections,Hemophilus Infection,Hib Infections,Infection, Haemophilus,Infection, Haemophilus influenzae,Infection, Hemophilus,Infection, Hib
D006193	Haemophilus influenzae	A species of HAEMOPHILUS found on the mucous membranes of humans and a variety of animals. The species is further divided into biotypes I through VIII.	Bacterium influenzae,Coccobacillus pfeifferi,Haemophilus meningitidis,Hemophilus influenzae,Influenza-bacillus,Mycobacterium influenzae
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D014739	Victoria	A state in southeastern Australia, the southernmost state. Its capital is Melbourne. It was discovered in 1770 by Captain Cook and first settled by immigrants from Tasmania. In 1851 it was separated from New South Wales as a separate colony. Self-government was introduced in 1851; it became a state in 1901. It was named for Queen Victoria in 1851. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p1295 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, p574)
D015876	Northern Territory	Territory in north central Australia, between the states of Queensland and Western Australia. Its capital is Darwin.