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Australian Paediatric Surveillance Unit (APSU) Annual Surveillance Report 2024
Suzy Teutsch1, Carlos Nunez2, Anne Morris2
1The University of Sydney, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Specialty of Child and Adolescent Health, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; The Australian Paediatric Surveillance Unit, The Sydney Children's Hospitals Network, Westmead, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. suzy.teutsch@health.nsw.gov.au.
Communicable Diseases Intelligence (2018)
|January 27, 2026
Summary
The Australian Paediatric Surveillance Unit (APSU) monitors rare communicable diseases in children. In 2024, surveillance included 15 conditions, with influenza and congenital cytomegalovirus being most frequent, providing crucial data on disease burden.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Infectious Diseases
- Public Health Surveillance
- Epidemiology
Background:
- The Australian Paediatric Surveillance Unit (APSU) has conducted national surveillance of rare childhood conditions since 1993.
- Surveillance encompasses communicable diseases and their complications in Australian children.
Purpose of the Study:
- To report on the 2024 surveillance data for 15 specified communicable diseases and complications in Australian children.
- To assess the incidence and characteristics of these rare conditions.
- To evaluate the ongoing utility of the APSU for understanding disease burden and intervention effects.
Main Methods:
- Prospective national surveillance involving 1,350 pediatricians and child health specialists.
- Monthly electronic report cards distributed by APSU.
- Analysis of 237 notifications, with 174 confirmed as incident cases.
Main Results:
- 174 incident cases identified across 15 conditions.
- Most frequent: Influenza (n=34, one death, low vaccination rate), Congenital Cytomegalovirus (n=26), Herpes Simplex Virus (n=8, common neurological sequelae).
- Rare diseases like Dengue (n=4) and Paediatric Inflammatory Multisystem Syndrome (PIMS-TS) (n=2) were also reported. Non-polio Acute Flaccid Paralysis rate met targets.
Conclusions:
- APSU remains vital for collecting detailed data on rare pediatric communicable diseases in Australia.
- Surveillance provides insights into disease burden and the impact of health interventions over time.
- Data highlights areas for potential intervention, such as influenza vaccination.
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