scholarly journals What evidence exists on the impacts of flow variability on fish and macroinvertebrates of temperate floodplain rivers in Central and Western Europe? A systematic map protocol

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Agata Keller ◽  
Somsubhra Chattopadhyay ◽  
Mikołaj Piniewski
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Climatic Variability ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Habitat Type ◽  
Water Diversion ◽  
Systematic Map ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
Flow Variability ◽  
Floodplain Rivers

Abstract Background Flow variability is considered a fundamental factor affecting riverine biota. Any alterations to flow regime can influence freshwater organisms, and this process is expected to change with the projected climate change. This systematic map, therefore, aims at investigating the impacts of natural (resulting from climatic variability), anthropogenic (resulting from direct human pressure), and climate change-induced flow variability on fish and macroinvertebrates of temperate floodplain rivers in Central and Western Europe. Particular focus will be placed on the effects of extreme low and high discharges. These rare events are known to regulate population size and taxonomic diversity. Methods All studies investigating the effects of flow variability on metrics concerning freshwater fish and macroinvertebrates will be considered in the map, particularly metrics such as: abundance, density, diversity, growth, migration, recruitment, reproduction, survival, or their substitutes, such as biomonitoring indices. Relevant flow variability will reflect (1) anthropogenic causes: dams, reservoirs, hydroelectric facilities, locks, levees, water abstraction, water diversion, land-use changes, road culverts; (2) natural causes: floods, droughts, seasonal changes; or (3) climate change. Geographically, the map will cover the ecoregion of Central and Western Europe, focusing on its major habitat type, namely “temperate floodplain rivers and wetlands”. The review will employ search engines and specialist websites, and cover primary and grey literature. No date, language, or document type restrictions will be applied in the search strategy. We expect the results to be primarily in English, although evidence (meeting all eligibility criteria) from other languages within the study area will also be included. We will also contact relevant stakeholders and announce an open call for additional information. Eligibility screening will be conducted at two levels: title and abstract, and full text. From eligible studies the following information will be extracted: the cause of flow variability, location, type of study, outcomes, etc. A searchable database containing extracted data will be developed and provided as supplementary material to the map report. The final narrative will describe the quantity and key characteristics of the available evidence, and identify knowledge gaps and knowledge clusters, i.e. subtopics sufficiently covered by existing studies allowing full systematic review and meta-analysis.

scholarly journals What evidence exists on the effectiveness of the techniques and management approaches used to improve the productivity of field-grown tomatoes under conditions of water-, nitrogen- and/or phosphorus-deficit? A systematic map

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fanny Tran ◽  
Jonathan E. Holland ◽  
Nora Quesada ◽  
Mark Young ◽  
Damian Bienkowski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Research Question ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
The United States ◽  
Systematic Map ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
Tomato Yield ◽  
Geographical Regions ◽  
Management Approaches

Abstract Background Agriculture is facing an unprecedented challenge in having to reduce its environmental footprint whilst ensuring food security to an ever-growing global population. Towards this end, several strategies have been investigated and implemented to help maintain or improve crop yield under reduced water and/or nutrient provision for key commercial commodities such as tomatoes. Despite the high commercial, nutritional, and food-cultural value, there is no synthesis of evidence regarding yield maintenance of tomato (as a model crop) under resource-deficit. This systematic map therefore provides an overview of the evidence that exists on the effectiveness of techniques and management approaches aimed at improving the productivity of field-grown tomatoes under conditions of water-, nitrogen- (N) and/or phosphorus (P)-deficit. Methods Following the published map protocol, systematic searches of peer reviewed- and grey-literature were conducted using research publication databases, and specialist websites. A total of 14,377 unique articles were identified as potentially relevant to our research question, of which 927 were screened at the full-text level. Of that subset, 291 articles met all the pre-defined eligibility criteria. Basic information and meta-data on the interventions reported were recorded for these articles and a systematic map was compiled with the extracted data. Results The articles included in the systematic map database were used to identify several significant points including: (1) from the year 2000, the number of articles investigating strategies to improve field-grown tomato yield under conditions of water and/or nutrient deficit follows an upward trend; (2) large evidence bases (> 50%) originated from the United States, India, and Italy; (3) most studies addressed water alone as a resource (49%), with only 18% of studies focussing on N and 4% on P alone. Only 4% of records assessed all three resources simultaneously; (4) most evidence (77%) aims to improve resource use-efficiency via either irrigation, fertilisation, or crop and soil management strategies; and (5) different geographical regions appear to focus on different groups of interventions. Conclusions This systematic map identifies a range of interventions that have been successfully implemented in fields to improve the yield of commercial tomatoes under conditions of water, N and/or P deficit. However, only half of the relevant literature reported evidence on more than one intervention, which highlights the need for more integrated approaches to assess multiple interventions to adapt to deficits of key-resources simultaneously. In addition, the use of ‘techno-chemical’, ‘breeding and genetic’ and ‘computational’ interventions are only reported in a small number of records (< 8% of the gathered evidence). Hence, these interventions may also be considered as subjects to prioritise in future funding strategies.

Bird communities and climate change

2019 ◽  
pp. 221-235
Author(s):  
Lluís Brotons ◽  
Sergi Herrando ◽  
Frédéric Jiguet ◽  
Aleksi Lehikoinen
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Community Structure ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Climatic Variability ◽  
Global Environmental Change ◽  
Habitat Type ◽  
Bird Community ◽  
Bird Communities ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
Impacts Of Climate Change

Climate variability drives many aspects of the ecology of species directly or indirectly through changes in habitat type and structure, and thus long-term climatic variability has been thought to be the key determinant of community structure and change at large spatial scales. We review potential and reported impacts of climate change on shifts in bird community structure and composition. Bird communities are expected to change structure and composition, but observed changes appear generally slower than expected from temperature changes. However, we still lack a better understanding of regional differences in bird community responses to the different components of climate change and the explicit integration of climate with other global changes such as land uses, pollution, and invasive species. Finally, we propose a conceptual framework to guide our capability of understanding models and anticipate impacts of climate change on bird communities in a context of general and global environmental change.

scholarly journals What evidence exists on the possible effects of urban forms on terrestrial biodiversity in western cities? A systematic map protocol

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Morgane Flégeau ◽  
Hélène Soubelet ◽  
Sophie Carré ◽  
Sébastien Barot ◽  
Xavier Lagurgue ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
English Language ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Systematic Map ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
Urban Forms ◽  
Terrestrial Species ◽  
Study Characteristics ◽  
Terrestrial Biodiversity ◽  
The City

Abstract Background As urban areas expand, scientists now agree that the city is an important space for biodiversity conservation. Yet, still relatively little is known about how urban forms could have a differential impact on terrestrial species and ecosystems. If some reviews have been conducted to examine the link between biodiversity and urban characteristics at an infra-city scale, none have explored the relationship between urban organization and biodiversity and tried to assess the capacity of various urban forms to maintain and possibly favour flora and fauna in the city. The resulting map will present the state of knowledge regarding possible relationships between urban forms and its features on the establishment and settlement of terrestrial and temperate biodiversity at infra-city scale in western cities. Methods The systematic map will follow the Collaboration for Environmental Evidence (CEE) Guidelines. We will collect the relevant peer-reviewed and grey literature in French and English language. The scientific literature will be retrieved with the use of a search string in two publication databases, one environmental and one social science database (Web Of Science Core Collection, and Cairn.info). We will also perform supplementary searches (search engines, call for literature, search for relevant reviews). All references will be screened for relevance using a three-stage process, according to a predefined set of eligibility criteria. Our study will concentrate on urban areas at the infra-city scale in cities of the temperate biogeographical zone. The subject population will include terrestrial species and ecosystems, except for archaea and bacteria. The exposure will consider all types of urban forms described by any urban descriptors or measures including heterogeneity, fragmentation, housing density, organisation of urban matrix, urban fabric) and all types of urban features (e.g. size, age of the buildings, materials, urban artefacts). All relevant outcomes will be considered (e.g. species richness, abundance, behaviour). We will provide an open-access database of the studies included in the map. Our results will also be presented narratively, together with tables and graphs summarising the key information coded from the retained articles (e.g. study characteristics, types and areas of research that has been undertaken, types of exposure, population concerned, etc.).

scholarly journals Diversity in health professional education scholarship: a document analysis of international author representation in leading journals

BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. e043970
Author(s):  
Brittany Buffone ◽  
Ilena Djuana ◽  
Katherine Yang ◽  
Kyle J Wilby ◽  
Maguy S El Hajj ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Professional ◽  
Professional Education ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
English Language ◽  
Data Extraction ◽  
Document Analysis ◽  
Original Research ◽  
Health Professional Education ◽  
Eligibility Criteria

ObjectivesThe global distribution of health professionals and associated training programmes is wide but prior study has demonstrated reported scholarship of teaching and learning arises from predominantly Western perspectives.DesignWe conducted a document analysis to examine authorship of recent publications to explore current international representation.Data sourcesThe table of contents of seven high-impact English-language health professional education journals between 2008 and 2018 was extracted from Embase.Eligibility criteriaThe journals were selected according to highest aggregate ranking across specific scientific impact indices and stating health professional education in scope; only original research and review articles from these publications were included for analysis.Data extraction and synthesisThe table of contents was extracted and eligible publications screened by independent reviewers who further characterised the geographic affiliations of the publishing research teams and study settings (if applicable).ResultsA total 12 018 titles were screened and 7793 (64.8%) articles included. Most were collaborations (7048, 90.4%) conducted by authors from single geographic regions (5851, 86%). Single-region teams were most often formed from countries in North America (56%), Northern Europe (14%) or Western Europe (10%). Overall lead authorship from Asian, African or South American regions was less than 15%, 5% and 1%, respectively. Geographic representation varied somewhat by journal, but not across time.ConclusionsDiversity in health professional education scholarship, as marked by nation of authors’ professional affiliations, remains low. Under-representation of published research outside Global North regions limits dissemination of novel ideas resulting in unidirectional flow of experiences and a concentrated worldview of teaching and learning.

scholarly journals Contexts and mechanisms that promote access to healthcare for populations experiencing homelessness: a realist review

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. e043091
Author(s):  
Rikke Siersbaek ◽  
John Alexander Ford ◽  
Sara Burke ◽  
Clíona Ní Cheallaigh ◽  
Steve Thomas
Keyword(s):  
Health System ◽  
Healthcare Access ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Realist Review ◽  
Access To Healthcare ◽  
Staff Retention ◽  
Programme Theory ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
Ovid Medline ◽  
High Level

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to identify and understand the health system contexts and mechanisms that allow for homeless populations to access appropriate healthcare when needed.DesignA realist review.Data sourcesOvid MEDLINE, embase.com, CINAHL, ASSIA and grey literature until April 2019.Eligibility criteria for selecting studiesThe purpose of the review was to identify health system patterns which enable access to healthcare for people who experience homelessness. Peer-reviewed articles were identified through a systematic search, grey literature search, citation tracking and expert recommendations. Studies meeting the inclusion criteria were assessed for rigour and relevance and coded to identify data relating to contexts, mechanisms and/or outcomes.AnalysisInductive and deductive coding was used to generate context–mechanism–outcome configurations, which were refined and then used to build several iterations of the overarching programme theory.ResultsSystematic searching identified 330 review articles, of which 24 were included. An additional 11 grey literature and primary sources were identified through citation tracking and expert recommendation. Additional purposive searching of grey literature yielded 50 records, of which 12 were included, for a total of 47 included sources. The analysis found that healthcare access for populations experiencing homelessness is improved when services are coordinated and delivered in a way that is organised around the person with a high degree of flexibility and a culture that rejects stigma, generating trusting relationships between patients and staff/practitioners. Health systems should provide long-term, dependable funding for services to ensure sustainability and staff retention.ConclusionsWith homelessness on the rise internationally, healthcare systems should focus on high-level factors such as funding stability, building inclusive cultures and setting goals which encourage and support staff to provide flexible, timely and connected services to improve access.

scholarly journals Exploring patient safety outcomes for people with learning disabilities in acute hospital settings: a scoping review

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. e047102
Author(s):  
Gemma Louch ◽  
Abigail Albutt ◽  
Joanna Harlow-Trigg ◽  
Sally Moore ◽  
Kate Smyth ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Patient Safety ◽  
Adverse Events ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
Hospital Setting ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
Infant Outcomes ◽  
Safety Outcomes

ObjectivesTo produce a narrative synthesis of published academic and grey literature focusing on patient safety outcomes for people with learning disabilities in an acute hospital setting.DesignScoping review with narrative synthesis.MethodsThe review followed the six stages of the Arksey and O’Malley framework. We searched four research databases from January 2000 to March 2021, in addition to handsearching and backwards searching using terms relating to our eligibility criteria—patient safety and adverse events, learning disability and hospital setting. Following stakeholder input, we searched grey literature databases and specific websites of known organisations until March 2020. Potentially relevant articles and grey literature materials were screened against the eligibility criteria. Findings were extracted and collated in data charting forms.Results45 academic articles and 33 grey literature materials were included, and we organised the findings around six concepts: (1) adverse events, patient safety and quality of care; (2) maternal and infant outcomes; (3) postoperative outcomes; (4) role of family and carers; (5) understanding needs in hospital and (6) supporting initiatives, recommendations and good practice examples. The findings suggest inequalities and inequities for a range of specific patient safety outcomes including adverse events, quality of care, maternal and infant outcomes and postoperative outcomes, in addition to potential protective factors, such as the roles of family and carers and the extent to which health professionals are able to understand the needs of people with learning disabilities.ConclusionPeople with learning disabilities appear to experience poorer patient safety outcomes in hospital. The involvement of family and carers, and understanding and effectively meeting the needs of people with learning disabilities may play a protective role. Promising interventions and examples of good practice exist, however many of these have not been implemented consistently and warrant further robust evaluation.

scholarly journals Sleep quality in the chronic stage of concussion is associated with poorer recovery: A systematic review

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 205970022110208
Author(s):  
Rebecca Ludwig ◽  
Eryen Nelson ◽  
Prasanna Vaduvathiriyan ◽  
Michael A Rippee ◽  
Catherine Siengsukon
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Sleep Quality ◽  
Sleep Disturbances ◽  
Data Extraction ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Chronic Phase ◽  
Emotional Symptoms ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
Chronic Stage ◽  
Prior Review

Background Recovery from a concussion varies based on a multitude of factors. One such factor is sleep disturbances. In our prior review, it was observed that in the acute phase, sleep disturbances are predictive of poor outcomes following a concussion. The literature gap remains on how sleep in the chronic phase of recovery affects outcomes. Objective To examine the association between sleep quality during the chronic stage of concussion and post-concussion outcomes. Literature Survey: Literature searches were performed during 1 July to 1 August 2019 in selected databases along with searching grey literature. Out of the 733 results, 702 references were reviewed after duplicate removal. Methods Three reviewers independently reviewed and consented on abstracts meeting eligibility criteria ( n = 35). The full-text articles were assessed independently by two reviewers. Consensus was achieved, leaving four articles. Relevant data from each study was extracted using a standard data-extraction table. Quality appraisal was conducted to assess potential bias and the quality of articles. Results One study included children (18–60 months) and three studies included adolescents and/or adults (ranging 12–35 years). The association between sleep and cognition (two studies), physical activity (one study), and emotion symptoms (one study) was examined. Sleep quality was associated with decreased cognition and emotional symptoms, but not with meeting physical activity guidelines six months post-concussion injury. Conclusions The heterogeneity in age of participants and outcomes across studies and limited number of included studies made interpretations difficult. Future studies may consider if addressing sleep quality following concussion will improve outcomes.

scholarly journals Hypnotherapy for Procedural Pain and Distress in Children: A scoping Review Protocol

Pain Medicine ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daly Geagea ◽  
Zephanie Tyack ◽  
Roy Kimble ◽  
Lars Eriksson ◽  
Vince Polito ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Scoping Review ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Cochrane Library ◽  
Procedural Pain ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Theoretical Frameworks ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
Pharmacological Agents ◽  
Review Protocol ◽  
Meta Analyses

Abstract Objective Inadequately treated pain and distress elicited by medical procedures can put children at higher risks of acute and chronic biopsychosocial sequelae. Children can benefit from hypnotherapy, a psychological tailored intervention, as an adjunct to pharmacological agents to address the multiple components of pain and distress. Despite providing evidence on the effectiveness and potential superiority of hypnotherapy to other psychological interventions, research on hypnotherapy for paediatric procedural pain and distress has been predominantly limited to oncology and needle procedures. Plus, there is a lack of reporting of intervention manuals, factors influencing hypnotic responding, pain unpleasantness outcomes, theoretical frameworks, adverse events, as well as barriers and facilitators to the feasibility of delivering the intervention and study procedures. The proposed review aims to map the range and nature of the evidence on hypnotherapy for procedural pain and distress in children to identify gaps in literature and areas requiring further investigation. Methods This review will follow the Arksey and O'Malley (2005) methodology and incorporate additional scoping review recommendations by The Joanna Briggs Institute and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses. Relevant studies will be identified through searching published literature databases (PubMed, Cochrane Library, PsycINFO, Embase, CINAHL, Scopus and Web of Science) and grey literature in addition to hand-searching of reference lists and key journals. Two authors will independently screen titles and abstracts of search results followed by full-texts review against eligibility criteria. Conclusion Findings are anticipated to guide future research and inform the development of tailored hypnotic interventions in children.

scholarly journals Measuring frailty in younger populations: a rapid review of evidence

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. e047051
Author(s):  
Gemma F Spiers ◽  
Tafadzwa Patience Kunonga ◽  
Alex Hall ◽  
Fiona Beyer ◽  
Elisabeth Boulton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Patient Outcomes ◽  
Predictive Validity ◽  
Data Extraction ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Frailty Index ◽  
Study Data ◽  
Rapid Review ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
Adult Age ◽  
The Impact

ObjectivesFrailty is typically assessed in older populations. Identifying frailty in adults aged under 60 years may also have value, if it supports the delivery of timely care. We sought to identify how frailty is measured in younger populations, including evidence of the impact on patient outcomes and care.DesignA rapid review of primary studies was conducted.Data sourcesFour databases, three sources of grey literature and reference lists of systematic reviews were searched in March 2020.Eligibility criteriaEligible studies measured frailty in populations aged under 60 years using experimental or observational designs, published after 2000 in English.Data extraction and synthesisRecords were screened against review criteria. Study data were extracted with 20% of records checked for accuracy by a second researcher. Data were synthesised using a narrative approach.ResultsWe identified 268 studies that measured frailty in samples that included people aged under 60 years. Of these, 85 studies reported evidence about measure validity. No measures were identified that were designed and validated to identify frailty exclusively in younger groups. However, in populations that included people aged over and under 60 years, cumulative deficit frailty indices, phenotype measures, the FRAIL Scale, the Liver Frailty Index and the Short Physical Performance Battery all demonstrated predictive validity for mortality and/or hospital admission. Evidence of criterion validity was rare. The extent to which measures possess validity across the younger adult age (18–59 years) spectrum was unclear. There was no evidence about the impact of measuring frailty in younger populations on patient outcomes and care.ConclusionsLimited evidence suggests that frailty measures have predictive validity in younger populations. Further research is needed to clarify the validity of measures across the adult age spectrum, and explore the utility of measuring frailty in younger groups.

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