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PROF RICHARD CURTIS



Contact Details

Organization: Paediatrics Royal Children's Hospital
Position: CHAIR OF PAEDIATRIC INFECTIOUS DISEASES
Email:
Work: 93456366
Level: 04
Building: School Of Peadiatrics
Campus: Royal Childrens Hospital

Biography

Nigel Curtis is Professor of Paediatric Infectious Diseases at the University of Melbourne and Head of Infectious Diseases at the Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne. He is also Joint Leader of the Microbiology & Infectious Diseases Research Group in the Murdoch Children's Research Institute. He trained in Cambridge, London and Vancouver, and, more recently, has also worked in Cape Town, South Africa on sabbatical. He has a wide range of clinical and laboratory research interests focusing on the immune response to infectious diseases. His PhD project investigated the role of superantigens in the pathogenesis of Kawasaki disease. Current research projects include host-pathogen interactions in severe staphylococcal and streptococcal disease, studies of the immune response to BCG vaccine, the immunodiagnosis of tuberculosis, and DNA microarray-based studies of gene expression in acute rheumatic fever.

Research Expertise and International Linkages

Research Expertise

Research Interest Country of Expertise
Infectious Diseases, Immunology, TB, Paediatrics Australia

Qualifications, Honours, Fellowships and Other Awards

Qualifications

Title Institution Date Awarded Abbreviation
Master of Arts University of Cambridge 31-Aug-1986
Bachelor of Medicine & Bachelor of Surgery University of London 31-Aug-1985
Doctor of Philosophy University of London 31-Aug-1998
Bachelor of Arts University of Cambridge 31-Aug-1982
Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene University of London - London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, 31-Aug-1990

Government Research Classifications

Research Fields, Courses and Discipline Classifications

Socio-Economic Objective Classifications

Publications

Publications produced at the University of Melbourne and reported in the Annual Publications Collection and 'Research Report' since 2001. The Themis Publications module, released in November 2006, allows additional publications from previous institutions and publications from past years to be entered.

Publications in 2009

Book Chapters

  • Infectious diseases
    Year: 2009
    Book: Paediatric Handbook
    Publisher: Blackwell Science
    Authors(s):
    Editors(s):

Journal Articles

Publications in 2008

Book Chapters

  • Toxin-mediated diseases
    Year: 2008
    Book: Infectious Diseases in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit
    Publisher: Springer(New York)
    Authors(s):
    URL - open access http://books.google.com.au/books?id=Xi1pRhh3gNIC
  • What the paediatrician needs to know when pandemic influenza arrives in clinical practice
    Year: 2008
    Book: Hot Topics in Infection and Immunity in Children IV
    Publisher: Springer Verlag(New York)
    Authors(s):

Journal Articles

Publications in 2007

Journal Articles

  • Strain Prevalence, Rather than Innate Virulence Potential, Is the Major Factor Responsible for an Increase in Serious Group A Streptococcus Infections
    Year: 2007
    Journal: Journal of Infectious Diseases
    Volume: 195
    Issue: 1
    Page numbers: 1625-1633
    Author(s):
    URL - open access http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&dopt=Citation&list_uids=17471432
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  • Antibiotics for whooping cough (pertussis)
    Year: 2007
    Journal: Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
    Volume: 3
    Page numbers: 4404
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  • Burden of Acute Sore Throat and Group A Streptococcal Pharyngitis in School-aged Children and Their Families in Australia
    Year: 2007
    Journal: Pediatrics
    Volume: 120
    Issue: 5
    Page numbers: 950-957
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  • Enhanced Ex Vivo Stimulation of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis-Specific T Cells in Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Infected Persons via Antigen Delivery by the Bordetella pertussis Adenylate Cyclase Vector
    Year: 2007
    Journal: Clinical and Vaccine Immunology
    Volume: 14
    Issue: 7
    Page numbers: 847-854
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  • How Reliable Is a Negative Blood Culture Result? Volume of Blood Submitted for Culture in Routine Practice in a Children's Hospital
    Year: 2007
    Journal: Pediatrics
    Volume: 119
    Issue: 5
    Page numbers: 891-896
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  • Interferon-gamma release assays in children - No better than tuberculin skin testing?
    Year: 2007
    Journal: Journal of Infection
    Volume: 54
    Issue: 4
    Page numbers: 412-413
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  • Liposomal amphotericin B trial marred by conclusions
    Year: 2007
    Journal: Clinical Infectious Diseases
    Volume: 45
    Issue: 5
    Page numbers: 667-8
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  • Physicians' perception of pandemic influenza
    Year: 2007
    Journal: Archives of Disease in Childhood
    Volume: 92
    Issue: 10
    Page numbers: 938
    Author(s):
    URL - open access http://www.tripdatabase.com/SearchLander.html?s=1&gk=Physician%27s+perception+of+pandemic+influenza&itemId=466254
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  • The epidemiology of invasive group A streptococcal disease in Victoria, Australia
    Year: 2007
    Journal: Medical Journal of Australia
    Volume: 186
    Issue: 11
    Page numbers: 565-569
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Publications in 2006

Journal Articles

  • B-cell antigen D8/17 is a marker of rheumatic fever susceptibily in Aboriginal Australians and can be tested in remote settings
    Year: 2006
    Journal: Medical Journal of Australia
    Volume: 184
    Issue: 10
    Page numbers: 507-510
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  • Early Detection of Perinatal Tuberculosis Using a Whole Blood Interferon Release Assay
    Year: 2006
    Journal: Clinical Infectious Diseases
    Volume: 42
    Page numbers: e82-e85
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  • Performance of a whole blood interferon gamma assay for detecting latent infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis in children
    Year: 2006
    Journal: Thorax
    Volume: 61
    Page numbers: 616-620
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  • QuantiFERON-TB Gold: state of the art for the diagnosis of tuberculosis infection?
    Year: 2006
    Journal: Expert Reviews in Molecular Diagnosis
    Volume: 6(5)
    Page numbers: 663-677
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  • Skin ulceration: what lies beneath
    Year: 2006
    Journal: The Lancet
    Volume: 367
    Page numbers: 1874
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  • Successful treatment of cytomegalovirus-associated haemophagocytic syndrome following paediatric orthotopic liver transplantation
    Year: 2006
    Journal: Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health
    Volume: 42
    Page numbers: 389 - 391
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  • Syphillis returns to the suburbs
    Year: 2006
    Journal: European Journal of Pediatrics
    Volume: 165
    Page numbers: 290-292
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  • Viral haemorrhagic fevers caused by Lassa, Ebola and Marburg viruses
    Year: 2006
    Journal: Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology
    Volume: 582
    Page numbers: 35-44
    Author(s):
    URL - open access http://www.pedresearch.org/pt/re/pedresearch/abstract.00006450-200409000-00214.htm;jsessionid=JzkpK562hhzQ1rS2VCHLF4hHQxlnTw1Q3pm3ppxqF91Q81ppd3WC!-1862535748!181195628!8091!-1
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  • Whole blood IFN-γ assay for detecting TB in children
    Year: 2006
    Journal: Thorax
    Volume: 61
    Page numbers: 919 - 921
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Publications in 2005

Book Chapters

  • How to interpret a CSF-the art and science.
    Year: 2005
    Book: Hot topics in infection and immunity in children II
    Publisher: Springer Science+Business Media(New York)
    Authors(s):

Journal Articles

  • Analysis of respiratory viral coinfection and cytomegalovirus coisolation in pediatric inpatients
    Year: 2005
    Journal: Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal
    Volume: 24
    Issue: 3
    Page numbers: 195-200
    Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins(Pennsylvania)
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  • Antibiotics for whooping cough (pertussis)
    Year: 2005
    Journal: Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
    Volume: 2005
    Issue: 1
    Page numbers: 2
    Publisher: Update Software
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  • Cytomegalovirus remains viable in naturally infected breast milk despite being frozen for 10 days
    Year: 2005
    Journal: Archives of Disease in Childhood - Fetal and Neonatal Edition
    Volume: 90
    Page numbers: F529-F530
    Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
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  • Fever in children
    Year: 2005
    Journal: Australian Family Physician
    Volume: 34
    Issue: 9
    Page numbers: 769-771
    Publisher: Royal Australian College of General Practitioners
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  • Skin ulcers in a returned traveller
    Year: 2005
    Journal: The Lancet
    Volume: 365
    Issue: 9460
    Page numbers: 726
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  • Suppurative sequelae of symbiosis
    Year: 2005
    Journal: The Lancet
    Volume: 365
    Issue: 9454
    Page numbers: 188
    Publisher: Lancet(London)
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  • The diagnosis and management of Kawasaki disease
    Year: 2005
    Journal: Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health
    Volume: 41
    Issue: 3
    Page numbers: 87-93
    Publisher: Blackwell Science Asia(Carlton)
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  • Variations in the protective immune response against streptococcal superantigens in population of different ethnicity.
    Year: 2005
    Journal: Prenatal Diagnosis
    Volume: 25
    Page numbers: 362-364
    Publisher: Wiley Europe
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Publications in 2004

Book Chapters

  • Kawasaki disease and toxic shock syndrome - at last the etiology is clear?
    Year: 2004
    Book: Hot Topics in Infection and Immunity in Children, Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology Volume 549
    Publisher: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers(New York)
    Authors(s):

Journal Articles

  • Cephalosporin resistant urinary tract infections in young children.
    Year: 2004
    Journal: Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health
    Volume: 40
    Issue: 1-2
    Page numbers: 48-52
    Publisher: Blackwell Science Asia(Carlton)
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  • Chips with everything: DNA microarrays in infectious diseases.
    Year: 2004
    Journal: The Lancet Infectious Diseases
    Volume: 4
    Page numbers: 100-111
    Publisher: The Lancet Publishing Group(London)
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  • Cytomegalovirus in breast milk: does it make very premature babies ill?
    Year: 2004
    Journal: Pediatric Research
    Volume: 56
    Issue: 3
    Page numbers: 496
    Author(s):
    URL - open access http://www.pedresearch.org/pt/re/pedresearch/abstract.00006450-200409000-00214.htm;jsessionid=JzkpK562hhzQ1rS2VCHLF4hHQxlnTw1Q3pm3ppxqF91Q81ppd3WC!-1862535748!181195628!8091!-1
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  • Fatal case of toxic shock-like syndrome due to group C streptococcus associated with superantigen exotoxin.
    Year: 2004
    Journal: Journal of Clinical Microbiology
    Volume: 42
    Issue: 6
    Page numbers: 2866-2869
    Publisher: American Society for Microbiology(Washington DC)
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  • Fever in a returned traveller.
    Year: 2004
    Journal: Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health
    Volume: 40
    Issue: 5-6
    Page numbers: 315-316
    Publisher: Blackwell Science Asia(Carlton)
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  • Neonatal coxsackie B virus infection - a treatable disease?
    Year: 2004
    Journal: European Journal of Pediatrics
    Volume: 163
    Issue: 4-5
    Page numbers: 223-228
    Publisher: Springer Verlag(Berlin)
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  • Prospective study of a real-time PCR that is highly sensitive, specific, and clinically useful for diagnosis of meningococcal disease in children.
    Year: 2004
    Journal: Journal of Clinical Microbiology
    Volume: 42
    Issue: 7
    Page numbers: 2919-2925
    Publisher: American Society for Microbiology(Washington DC)
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  • Sick and tired: does sleep have a vital role in the immune system?
    Year: 2004
    Journal: Nature Reviews Immunology
    Volume: 4
    Issue: 6
    Page numbers: 457-467
    Publisher: Nature Publishing Group(London)
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  • Sick and tired: does sleep have a vital role in the immune system?
    Year: 2004
    Journal: Nature Reviews Immunology
    Volume: 4
    Page numbers: 457-467
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  • The burden and cost of hospitalised varicella and zoster in Australian children.
    Year: 2004
    Journal: Vaccine
    Volume: 23
    Page numbers: 755-761
    Publisher: Elsevier Science(Oxford)
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  • The burden of group A streptococcal pharyngitis in Melbourne families
    Year: 2004
    Journal: Indian Journal of Medical Research
    Volume: 119 (Suppl)
    Page numbers: 144-147
    Publisher: Indian Council of Medical Research(New Delhi)
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Publications in 2003

Book Chapters

  • Infectious diseases
    Year: 2003
    Book: Paediatric Handbook
    Publisher: Blackwell Publishers(Carlton South)
    Authors(s):

Journal Articles

  • Return of Haemophilus influenzae type b infections


    Year: 2003
    Journal: The Lancet Infectious Diseases
    Volume: 361
    Issue: 9368
    Page numbers: 1564
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  • Antibiotic treatment for bacterial meningitis in children in developing countries.
    Year: 2003
    Journal: Annals of Tropical Paediatrics
    Volume: 23
    Issue: 4
    Page numbers: 233-253
    Publisher: Carfax Publishing
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  • Bacterial meningitis in developing countries
    Year: 2003
    Journal: The Lancet
    Volume: 361
    Issue: May 3
    Page numbers: 1564
    Publisher: Lancet(London)
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  • Evidence on the use of paracetamol in febrile children.
    Year: 2003
    Journal: Bulletin of the World Health Organization
    Volume: 81
    Issue: 5
    Page numbers: 367-372
    Publisher: World Health Organization(Geneva)
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  • Pertussis: adults as a source in healthcare settings.
    Year: 2003
    Journal: Medical Journal of Australia
    Volume: 178
    Issue: 4
    Page numbers: 191-191
    Publisher: Australasian Medical Publishing Co Ltd(Sydney)
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  • Rapid analysis of the Vβ repertoire of CD4 and CD8 T lymphocytes in whole blood
    Year: 2003
    Journal: Journal of Immunological Methods
    Volume: 283
    Issue: 1-2
    Page numbers: 9-15
    Publisher: Elsevier Science(Amsterdam)
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  • The management of bacterial meningitis in children.
    Year: 2003
    Journal: Expert Opinion on Pharmacotherapy
    Volume: 4
    Issue: 8
    Page numbers: 1227-1240
    Publisher: Ashley Publications
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Publications in 2002

Journal Articles

  • Mycobacterium ulcerans infection diagnosed by polymerase chain reaction
    Year: 2002
    Journal: Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health
    Volume: 38
    Page numbers: 311-313
    Publisher: Blackwell Science Asia(Carlton)
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  • Auditory- and somatosensory-evoked potentials in cerebral malaria and anaesthesia: a comparison
    Year: 2002
    Journal: European Journal of Anaesthesiology
    Volume: 19
    Issue: 10
    Page numbers: 717-726
    Publisher: Greenwich Medical Media(London)
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  • Clinical implications of inducible beta-lactamase activity in Gram-negative bacteremia in children
    Year: 2002
    Journal: Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal
    Volume: 21
    Issue: 10
    Page numbers: 935-940
    Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins(Pennsylvania)
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  • Cytomegalovirus transmission from breast milk in premature babies: does it matter?
    Year: 2002
    Journal: Archives of Disease in Childhood - Fetal and Neonatal Edition
    Volume: 87
    Page numbers: F75-F77
    Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
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  • Duration of antibiotics in children with osteomyelitis and septic arthritis
    Year: 2002
    Journal: Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health
    Volume: 38
    Issue: 4
    Page numbers: 363-367
    Publisher: Blackwell Science Asia(Carlton)
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  • Recurrent crepitant cellulitis caused by Clostridium perfringens
    Year: 2002
    Journal: Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal
    Volume: 21
    Issue: 12
    Page numbers: 1173-1174
    Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins(Pennsylvania)
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  • The "surreptitious staphylococcus": Staphylococcus lugdunensis endocarditis in a child
    Year: 2002
    Journal: Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal
    Volume: 21
    Issue: 10
    Page numbers: 984-986
    Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins(Pennsylvania)
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  • Treatment of sore throat in light of the Cochrane verdict: is the jury still out?
    Year: 2002
    Journal: Medical Journal of Australia
    Volume: 177
    Page numbers: 512-515
    Publisher: Australasian Medical Publishing Co Ltd(Sydney)
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Publications in 2001

Journal Articles

  • Aspergillus laryngotracheobronchial infection in a 6-year-old girl following bone marrow transplantation
    Year: 2001
    Journal: International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology
    Volume: 59
    Issue: 1
    Page numbers: 59-62
    Publisher: Elsevier Science Ireland(Coclare)
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  • Severe Bordetella holmesii Infection in a Previously Healthy Adolescent Confirmed by Gene Sequence Analysis
    Year: 2001
    Journal: Clinical Infectious Diseases
    Volume: 33
    Page numbers: 129-130
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  • Successful treatment of foscarnet-resistant herpes simplex somatitis with intravenous cidofovir in a child
    Year: 2001
    Journal: Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal
    Volume: 20
    Page numbers: 1083-1086
    Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins(Pennsylvania)
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  • True anaphylaxis to MMR vaccine is extremely rare
    Year: 2001
    Journal: British Medical Journal
    Volume: 323
    Issue: 7317
    Page numbers: 869
    Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group(London)
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