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Strongyloidiasis: a case for notification in Australia?

Richard Speare, Adrian Miller and Wendy A Page
Med J Aust 2015; 202 (10): . || doi: 10.5694/mja15.00112
Published online: 1 June 2015

To the Editor: Australia's National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS) is used to monitor trends in 58 communicable diseases or conditions. The incidence of notifiable diseases can be decreased by public health action. Some diseases require rapid local responses, such as outbreaks of vaccine-preventable or foodborne diseases. Upward trends in the incidence of other notifiable diseases — for example, tuberculosis, sexually transmitted infections and bloodborne viruses — can be managed by less-rapid responses. The NNDSS exists not for data collection per se, but for public health action.


  • 1 Tropical Health Solutions, Townsville, QLD.
  • 2 James Cook University, Townsville, QLD.
  • 3 Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD.
  • 4 Miwatj Health Aboriginal Corporation, Nhulunbuy, NT.


Correspondence: 

Acknowledgements: 

We thank Jenni Judd and Jennifer Shield for their contributions to the writing of this letter, and the Australian Research Council Discovery Indigenous Researchers Development program for support.

Competing interests:

No relevant disclosures.

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  • 3. Shield J. Mapping Strongyloides stercoralis in Australia: fill in the gaps. Poster presented at the Ninth National Workshop on Strongyloidiasis. Proceedings of the Rural Medicine Australia 2014 Conference; Oct 30-Nov 1; Sydney, Australia.
  • 4. Johnston FH, Morris PS, Speare R, et al. Strongyloidiasis: a review of the evidence for Australian practitioners. Aust J Rural Health 2005; 13: 247-254.
  • 5. Miller A, Smith M, Judd J, et al. Strongyloides stercoralis: systematic review of barriers to controlling strongyloidiasis for Australian Indigenous communities. PLOS Negl Trop Dis 2014; 8: e3141.
  • 6. Speare R, Durrheim D. Strongyloides serology — useful for diagnosis and management of strongyloidiasis in rural Indigenous populations, but important gaps in knowledge remain. Rural Remote Health 2004; 4: 264.
  • 7. Page W. Dempsey K, McCarthy JS. Utility of serological follow-up of chronic strongyloidiasis after anthelmintic chemotherapy. Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg 2006; 100: 1056-1064.

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