scholarly journals Multimorbidity, Loneliness, and Social Isolation. A Systematic Review

Author(s):  
André Hajek ◽  
Benedikt Kretzler ◽  
Hans-Helmut König

No systematic review has appeared so far synthesizing the evidence regarding multimorbidity and loneliness, social isolation, or social frailty. Consequently, our aim was to fill this gap. Three electronic databases (PubMed, PsycINFO, and CINAHL) were searched in our study. Observational studies examining the link between multimorbidity and loneliness, social isolation, and social frailty were included, whereas disease-specific samples were excluded. Data extraction included methods, characteristics of the sample, and the main results. A quality assessment was conducted. Two reviewers performed the study selection, data extraction, and quality assessment. In sum, eight studies were included in the final synthesis. Some cross-sectional and longitudinal studies point to an association between multimorbidity and increased levels of loneliness. However, the associations between multimorbidity and social isolation as well as social frailty remain largely underexplored. The quality of the studies included was rather high. In conclusion, most of the included studies showed a link between multimorbidity and increased loneliness. However, there is a lack of studies examining the association between multimorbidity and social isolation as well as social frailty. Future studies are required to shed light on these important associations. This is particularly important in times of the COVID-19 pandemic.

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdou Fatawou Modiyinji ◽  
Jean Joel Bigna ◽  
Sebastien Kenmoe ◽  
Fredy Brice N. Simo ◽  
Marie A. Amougou ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a major cause of acute hepatitis in humans worldwide and have high burden in the resource-limited countries. Better knowledge of the epidemiology of hepatitis in animals in Africa can help to understand the epidemiology among humans. The objective of this study was to summarize the prevalence of HEV infection and distribution of HEV genotypes among animals in Africa. Methods In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we comprehensively searched PubMed, EMBASE, African Journals Online, and Africa Index Medicus from January 1st, 2000 to March 22th, 2020 without any language restriction. We considered cross-sectional studies of HEV infection in animals in Africa. Study selection, data extraction, and methodological quality of included studies were done independently by two investigators. Prevalence data were pooled using the random-effects meta-analysis. This review was registered in PROSPERO, CRD42018087684. Results Twenty-five studies (13 species and 6983 animals) were included. The prevalence (antibodies or ribonucleic acid [RNA]) of HEV infection in animals varied widely depending on biological markers of HEV infection measured: 23.4% (95% confidence interval; 12.0–37.2) for anti-HEV immunoglobulins G, 13.1% (3.1–28.3) for anti-HEV immunoglobulins M, and 1.8% (0.2–4.3) for RNA; with substantial heterogeneity. In subgroup analysis, the immunoglobulins G seroprevalence was higher among pigs 37.8% (13.9–65.4). The following HEV genotypes were reported in animals: Rat-HEV genotype 1 (rats and horses), HEV-3 (pigs), HEV-7 (dromedaries), and Bat hepeviruses (bats). Conclusions We found a high prevalence of HEV infection in animals in Africa and HEV genotypes close to that of humans. Some animals in Africa could be the reservoir of HEV, highlighting the need of molecular epidemiological studies for investigating zoonotic transmission.


BMJ Open ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (9) ◽  
pp. e017567
Author(s):  
Shimels Hussien Mohammed ◽  
Mulugeta Molla Birhanu ◽  
Tesfamichael Awoke Sissay ◽  
Tesfa Dejenie Habtewold ◽  
Balewgizie Sileshi Tegegn ◽  
...  

IntroductionIndividuals living in poor neighbourhoods are at a higher risk of overweight/obesity. There is no systematic review and meta-analysis study on the association of neighbourhood socioeconomic status (NSES) with overweight/obesity. We aimed to systematically review and meta-analyse the existing evidence on the association of NSES with overweight/obesity.Methods and analysisCross-sectional, case–control and cohort studies published in English from inception to 15 May 2017 will be systematically searched using the following databases: PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Sciences and Google Scholar. Selection, screening, reviewing and data extraction will be done by two reviewers, independently and in duplicate. The Newcastle–Ottawa Scale (NOS) will be used to assess the quality of evidence. Publication bias will be checked by visual inspection of funnel plots and Egger’s regression test. Heterogeneity will be checked by Higgins’s method (I2statistics). Meta-analysis will be done to estimate the pooled OR. Narrative synthesis will be performed if meta-analysis is not feasible due to high heterogeneity of studies.Ethics and disseminationEthical clearance is not required as we will be using data from published articles. Findings will be communicated through a publication in a peer-reviewed journal and presentations at professional conferences.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42017063889.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 305-318
Author(s):  
Rachael Vriezen ◽  
Jan M. Sargeant ◽  
Ellen Vriezen ◽  
Charlotte B. Winder ◽  
Annette M. O'Connor

AbstractTo implement effective stewardship in food animal production, it is essential that producers and veterinarians are aware of preventive interventions to reduce illness in livestock. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses (SR/MA) provide transparent, replicable, and quality-assessed overviews. At present, it is unknown how many SR/MA evaluate preventive antibiotic use or management practices aimed at reducing disease risk in animal agriculture. Further, the quality of existing reviews is unknown. Our aim was to identify reviews investigating these topics and to provide an assessment of their quality. Thirty-eight relevant reviews were identified. Quality assessment was based on the AMSTAR 2 framework for the critical appraisal of systematic reviews. The quality of most of the reviews captured was classified as critically low (84.2%, n = 32/38), and only a small percentage of the evaluated reviews did not contain critical weaknesses (7.9%, n = 3/38). Particularly, a small number of reviews reported the development of an a priori protocol (15.8%, n = 6/38), and few reviews stated that key review steps were conducted in duplicate (study selection/screening: 26.3%, n = 10/38; data extraction: 15.8%, n = 6/38). The development of high-quality reviews summarizing evidence on approaches to antibiotic reduction is essential, and thus greater adherence to quality conduct guidelines for synthesis research is crucial.


2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 272-284
Author(s):  
Susanne Buecker ◽  
Kai T. Horstmann

Abstract. The outbreak of the global COVID-19 pandemic has drastically altered people’s lives. Loneliness and social isolation were publicly discussed as possible psychological consequences of the measures taken to slow the virus spread. These public discussions have sparked a surge in empirical studies on loneliness and social isolation. In this study, we first provide a systematic review synthesizing recent literature on the prevalence and correlates of loneliness and social isolation during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic ( k = 53 studies). We found that most quantitative studies included in the systematic review were cross-sectional. The few longitudinal studies mainly reported increases in loneliness, especially when the pre-pandemic measurement occasions were months or years before the COVID-19 pandemic. Studies with pre-pandemic measures weeks or days before the pandemic reported relatively stable or even decreasing loneliness trends. Second, we enrich the systematic review with an empirical investigation on daily changes in the perceived quality and quantity of social relationships during the pandemic compared to before the pandemic ( N = 4,823). This empirical investigation showed that, on average, the quality of social relationships was perceived worse during the pandemic than before. This perception got slightly stronger over the first 2 weeks of the pandemic but stagnated thereafter. Regarding the quantity of social relationships, participants reported on average that they had fewer social interactions at the beginning of the study than before the pandemic. This perceived reduction in the quantity of social interactions linearly decreased over time.


Author(s):  
Ricky Cik Kohar ◽  
Junita Maja Pertiwi ◽  
Finny Warouw

Stress/burnout on resident physicians is common. Various determinants can be related to resident stress. This systematic review was conducted to determine how situational, personal, or professional determinants influence resident stress. We identified an English and Indonesia articles using online database including PubMed, Wiley Online Library, Google Scholar, Garba Rujukan Digital (GARUDA), and manually searching bibliographies of the included studies from January 01, 2001 until April 30, 2021. Three main search terms included are resident physician, determinant, and stress/burnout. Study selection included was peer-reviewed literatures of observational studies that discuss about stress determinants on residents from various year of training and medical specialties. Methodological quality of studies was assessed using Newcastle-Ottawa Scale adopted for cross-sectional studies. Data extraction conducted by 3 authors. All pooled synthesis were summarized based on narrative methods. Fifty-three cross-sectional, 1 prospective, and 1 combination of cross-sectional and longitudinal studies meet our inclusion criteria (n=29.031). Fifty-one percent are male, and the average age of the participants was 29 years old. The most stress/burnout validated tool used are Maslach Burnout Inventory. The average quality of study was moderate for cross-sectional studies. The main identified determinant was situational, the second was personal, and the latter was professional. The most stressor identified was ‘excessive working time per week, includes night shift, on-call, work on day off, and rotation more than 24 hours.’ Stress/burnout on residents closely related mainly to situational, followed by personal, and less by professional determinants. There was needed for an intervention to the educational program from institution in the future for better accomplishment.


2021 ◽  
Vol In Press (In Press) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hossein Mirzaie ◽  
Mohammad Vahidi ◽  
Mostafa Shokoohi ◽  
Maryam Darvishian ◽  
Hamid Sharifi ◽  
...  

Context: Hepatic manifestations of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) are common among people infected with Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) and Hepatitis C Virus (HCV). Objectives: This systematic review aimed to summarize the evidence on COVID-19 patients with HBV or HCV co-infections. Data Sources: We searched multiple electronic databases and preprint servers from December 1, 2019, to August 9, 2020. Study Selection: Studies were included if they reported quantitative empirical data on COVID-19 patients with HBV or HCV co-infections. Data Extraction: Descriptive analyses were reported, and data were synthesized narratively. The quality assessment was completed using the Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal tools. Results: Out of 941 identified records, 27 studies were included. Of the eligible studies, 232 patients with COVID-19 were infected with HBV and 22 patients with HCV. Most patients were male, and the mean age was 49.8 and 62.8 years in patients with HBV and HCV, respectively. Among the reported cases of SARS-CoV-2-HBV co-infection, the proportions of death were 4.7% and 15% in cross-sectional and case series/report studies, respectively. The death proportion was 8.8% among the reported cases of SARS-CoV-2-HCV co-infection. Among COVID-19 patients, 34.1% and 76.2% reported at least one comorbidity besides HBV and HCV infections, mainly hypertension and type 2 diabetes mellitus. The most common COVID-19-related symptoms in both HBV and HCV groups were fever, cough, dyspnea, fatigue, and gastrointestinal symptoms. Conclusions: While understanding the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 requires further investigations, the careful assessment of hepatic manifestations and chronic infections such as HBV and HCV upon the admission of COVID-19 patients could help reduce multimorbidity among HBV or HCV patients and lead to more favorable health outcomes among them.


BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. e044902
Author(s):  
André Hajek ◽  
Benedikt Kretzler ◽  
Hans-Helmut König

IntroductionSome empirical studies have identified an association between informal caregiving for adults and loneliness or social isolation. However, there is a lack of a review systematically synthesising empirical studies that have examined these associations. Hence, the aim of this systematic review is to provide an overview of evidence from observational studies.Methods and analysisThree electronic databases (Medline, PsycINFO, CINAHL) will be searched (presumably in May 2021), and reference lists of included studies will be searched manually. Cross-sectional and longitudinal observational studies examining the association between informal caregiving for adults and loneliness or social isolation will be included. Studies focusing on grandchildren care or private care for chronically ill children will be excluded. Data extraction will include information related to study design, definition and measurement of informal caregiving, loneliness and social isolation, sample characteristics, statistical analysis and main results. The quality of the studies will be evaluated using the National Institutes of Health Quality Assessment Tool for Observational Cohort and Cross-Sectional Studies. Two reviewers will perform the selection of studies, data extraction and assessment of study quality. Figures and tables will be used to summarise and report results. A narrative summary of the findings will be provided. If data permit, a meta-analysis will be conducted.Ethics and disseminationNo primary data will be collected. Therefore, approval by an ethics committee is not required. We plan to publish our findings in a peer-reviewed journal.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42020193099.


2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 334-345 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allen W A Gallagher ◽  
Karen A Evans-Reeves ◽  
Jenny L Hatchard ◽  
Anna B Gilmore

ObjectiveTo examine the quality of tobacco industry-funded data on the illicit tobacco trade (ITT) through a systematic review of existing assessments of industry-funded data on ITT.Data sourcesPapers and reports assessing tobacco industry-funded data on ITT were obtained via searches of 8 academic databases, Google searches and correspondence with ITT experts.Study selectionInclusion criteria identified 35 English-language papers containing an original assessment of tobacco industry-funded data.Data extractionUsing a coding framework, information was extracted from the assessments regarding the quality of tobacco industry data. Documents were second-coded, achieving 94% intercoder reliability with all disagreements resolved.Data synthesisOf the 35 assessments reviewed, 31 argued that tobacco industry estimates were higher than independent estimates. Criticisms identified problems with data collection (29), analytical methods (22) and presentation of results (21), which resulted in inflated ITT estimates or data on ITT that were presented in a misleading manner. Lack of transparency from data collection right through to presentation of findings was a key issue with insufficient information to allow replication of the findings frequently cited.ConclusionsTobacco industry data on ITT are not reliable. At present, the tobacco industry continues to fund and disseminate ITT research through initiatives such as PMI IMPACT. If industry data on ITT cannot meet the standards of accuracy and transparency set by high-quality research publications, a solution may be to tax tobacco companies and administer the resulting funds to experts, independent of the tobacco industry, who use previously developed reliable models for measuring ITT.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth A. Terhune ◽  
Patricia C Heyn ◽  
Christi R Piper ◽  
Nancy Hadley-Miller

Abstract BackgroundAdolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is a structural lateral spinal curvature of ≥ 10° with rotation. Approximately 2–3% of children in most populations are affected with AIS, and this condition is responsible for approximately $1.1 billion in surgical costs to the U.S. healthcare system. Although a genetic factor for AIS has been demonstrated for decades, with multiple loci identified across populations, treatment options have remained limited to bracing and surgery.MethodsThe databases MEDLINE (via PubMed), Embase, Google Scholar, and Ovid MEDLINE will be searched and limited to articles in English. We will conduct title and abstract, full-text, and data extraction screening through Covidence, followed by data transfer to a custom REDCap database. Quality assessment will be confirmed by multiple reviewers. Studies containing variant-level data (i.e. GWAS, exome sequencing) for AIS subjects and controls will be considered. Outcomes of interest will include presence/absence of AIS, scoliosis curve severity, scoliosis curve progression, and presence/absence of nucleotide-level variants. Analyses will include odds ratios and relative risk assessments, and subgroup analysis (i.e. males vs. females, age groups) may be applied. Quality assessment tools will include GRADE and Q-Genie for genetic studies.DiscussionIn this systematic review we seek to evaluate the quality of genetic evidence for AIS to better inform research efforts, to ultimately improve the quality of patient care and diagnosis.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO registration #CRD42021243253


BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. e047062
Author(s):  
Roula Zougheibe ◽  
Beverly Jepson ◽  
Richard Norman ◽  
Ori Gudes ◽  
Ashraf Dewan

ObjectiveTo identify, summarise and evaluate evidence on the correlation between perceived and actual neighbourhood safety (personal and road danger) and diverse forms of outdoor active mobility behaviour (ie, active play, exercise, and travel) among primary-school-aged children.DesignA systematic review of evidence from observational studies exploring children’s active mobility behaviour and safety.Data sourcesSix electronic databases were searched: Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct, ProQuest and Web of Science from study inception until July 2020.Data extraction and synthesisStudy selection and quality assessment were conducted independently by two reviewers. We expanded on a quality assessment tool and adopted a vote-counting technique to determine strength of evidence. The outcomes were categorised by individual, family and neighbourhood levels.ResultsA total of 29 studies were included, with a majority of cross-sectional design. Higher parental perceived personal safety correlated with increased children’s active mobility behaviour, but most commonly in active travel (eg, independent walking or cycling to a local destination). Increased concerns regarding road danger correlated with a decrease in each type of children’s active behaviour; active travel, play and exercise. However, these correlations were influenced by child’s sex/gender, age, car ownership, neighbourhood types, across time, and proximity to destination. Limited or inconclusive evidence was found on correlate of children’s outdoor active mobility behaviour to ‘stranger danger’, children’s perceived personal safety, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status or measured safety.ConclusionChildren are restricted by perception of safety. Encouraging children’s active travel may require future strategies to address characteristics relevant to types of the neighbourhood that promote a high sense of personal safety. Children and parents may embrace other types of active mobility behaviour if road danger is mitigated. Sex/gender and age-specific interventions and redesign of public places could lead to child-friendly cities. Future studies may benefit from adopting validated measurement methods and fill existing research gaps.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document