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Background: Currently in Australia, men are deferred from donating blood if they have had sex with another man within the past 3 months. However, a proposed gender‐neutral assessment (GNA) process will ask all donors questions about sex with new or multiple recent partners, with deferral based on responses to a question about anal sex. Understanding the acceptability of such questions among existing and potential blood donors is paramount for successful implementation of GNA. Study Design and Methods: We used data from a nationally representative survey to estimate the levels of comfort with the proposed GNA questions among the Australian population and subgroups, defined by self‐reported ethnicity and religion. Respondents were aged over 18 and living in Australia. Results were weighted to represent the population. Results: Most of the 5178 respondents described themselves as comfortable with answering questions about new partners (73.1%) or anal sex (64.0%) to donate blood. However, 2.2% and 4.5% indicated that questions about new sex partners and anal sex, respectively, would stop them from donating, and 4.4% and 7.7% respectively, said they were "completely uncomfortable." By religion, the least comfortable were Muslim or Eastern Orthodox respondents, and by country of birth, the least comfortable were those born in the Middle East, followed by those born in Southern Europe and Asia. Discussion: GNA appears to be broadly acceptable in the Australian context, but our findings suggest that key GNA questions are less acceptable in some population subgroups, indicating a need for targeted campaigns that consider cultural sensitivities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) is a critical replacement therapy for immunodeficiencies and immunomodulatory treatment for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Adequate supply of IVIg is a global issue, necessitating supply restrictions. In Australia, despite strict criteria for use, demand for IVIg has increased over time and exceeds domestic supply. Objective: Factors associated with the upward trend in overall IVIg use were examined, including in the number of unique patients, IVIg dosing and treatment frequency and variations by prescribing discipline and disease group. Methods: De‐identified data of IVIg dispensed in the largest Australian state (New South Wales) from 2007 to 2013 were provided by Australian Red Cross Lifeblood. Trends and projections were calculated using log‐linear regression of unique patients, treatment episodes and grams of IVIg for overall use and use stratified by discipline and disease group. Results: During the study period, 169 453 treatment episodes were recorded for 12 547 unique patients accounting for 5 827 787 g of IVIg use. Overall, IVIg use increased by 12.0% (11.5–12.6%) per year representing a 97.7% increase (91.6–104%) over the study period. The highest growth was among neurological conditions (16.0% (14.9–17.1%) per year). An increase in the number of unique patients was the primary driver of this growth, augmented by increases in the frequency and average dose per treatment. Conclusions: Clinically acceptable measures to improve management of IVIg supply are needed including optimising dose, frequency and duration of treatment. Formal evaluation of IVIg versus alternatives, including cost‐effectiveness and comparative efficacy, is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Vaccine-preventable infections are generally well controlled in Australia. However, gaps in immunity can lead to outbreaks and are important to identify. Young adults are a highly mobile population and a potential source of imported infections. We aimed to evaluate anti- measles, mumps, rubella and varicella (MMR&V) IgG seroprevalence and explore factors relating to antibody seropositivity. Methods A cross-sectional online survey was conducted among students from a large Australian university to collect demographic, vaccination, infection and travel characteristics. Blood samples were collected to measure MMR&V seroprevalence. Logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with seropositivity. Results Among 804 university students, seroprevalence (positive or equivocal) for measles was 82.3% (95% CI 79.6–84.8%), mumps 79.5% (95% CI 76.7–82.3%), rubella 91.5% (95% CI 89.6–93.5%) and varicella 86.2% (95% CI 84.1–88.8%), with 452 (56.2%, 95% CI 52.8–59.6) seropositive to all four viruses. Varicella seropositivity was highest in the older birth cohort (born 1988–1991). Measles seropositivity was higher for international students compared to domestic students. Among international students, mumps seroprevalence was significantly lower than measles and rubella seroprevalence. International travel in the previous 12 months was reported by 63.1% of students, but only 18.2% of travellers reported seeking pre-travel health advice prior to most recent international travel. Conclusions Overall, this study suggests immunity to MMR&V is sub-optimal. We found the university student population to be highly mobile and unlikely to seek pre-travel advice; thus, they are a potential source of infection importation. The implementation of university immunization policies could address the gaps identified and our findings can inform the development of targeted vaccination campaigns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]