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Heliyon Oct 2023Soundscape ecology is a promising area that studies landscape patterns based on their acoustic composition. It focuses on the distribution of biotic and abiotic sounds... (Review)
Review
Soundscape ecology is a promising area that studies landscape patterns based on their acoustic composition. It focuses on the distribution of biotic and abiotic sounds at different frequencies of the landscape acoustic attribute and the relationship of said sounds with ecosystem health metrics and indicators (e.g., species richness, acoustic biodiversity, vectors of structural change, gradients of vegetation cover, landscape connectivity, and temporal and spatial characteristics). To conduct such studies, researchers analyze recordings from Acoustic Recording Units (ARUs). The increasing use of ARUs and their capacity to record hours of audio for months at a time have created a need for automatic processing methods to reduce time consumption, correlate variables implicit in the recordings, extract features, and characterize sound patterns related to landscape attributes. Consequently, traditional machine learning methods have been commonly used to process data on different characteristics of soundscapes, mainly the presence-absence of species. In addition, it has been employed for call segmentation, species identification, and sound source clustering. However, some authors highlight the importance of the new approaches that use unsupervised deep learning methods to improve the results and diversify the assessed attributes. In this paper, we present a systematic review of machine learning methods used in the field of ecoacoustics for data processing. It includes recent trends, such as semi-supervised and unsupervised deep learning methods. Moreover, it maintains the format found in the reviewed papers. First, we describe the ARUs employed in the papers analyzed, their configuration, and the study sites where the datasets were collected. Then, we provide an ecological justification that relates acoustic monitoring to landscape features. Subsequently, we explain the machine learning methods followed to assess various landscape attributes. The results show a trend towards label-free methods that can process the large volumes of data gathered in recent years. Finally, we discuss the need to adopt methods with a machine learning approach in other biological dimensions of landscapes.
PubMed: 37790981
DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20275 -
The Lancet. Global Health Nov 20172·6 million stillbirths occur annually worldwide. The association between malaria in pregnancy and stillbirth has yet to be comprehensively quantified. We aimed to... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
BACKGROUND
2·6 million stillbirths occur annually worldwide. The association between malaria in pregnancy and stillbirth has yet to be comprehensively quantified. We aimed to quantify the association between malaria in pregnancy and stillbirth, and to assess the influence of malaria endemicity on the association.
METHODS
We did a systematic review of the association between confirmed malaria in pregnancy and stillbirth. We included population-based cross-sectional, cohort, or case-control studies (in which cases were stillbirths or perinatal deaths), and randomised controlled trials of malaria in pregnancy interventions, identified before Feb 28, 2017. We excluded studies in which malaria in pregnancy was not confirmed by PCR, light microscopy, rapid diagnostic test, or histology. The primary outcome was stillbirth. We pooled estimates of the association between malaria in pregnancy and stillbirth using meta-analysis. We used meta-regression to assess the influence of endemicity. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, protocol number CRD42016038742.
FINDINGS
We included 59 studies of 995 records identified, consisting of 141 415 women and 3387 stillbirths. Plasmodium falciparum malaria detected at delivery in peripheral samples increased the odds of stillbirth (odds ratio [OR] 1·81 [95% CI 1·42-2·30]; I=26·1%; 34 estimates), as did P falciparum detected in placental samples (OR 1·95 [1·48-2·57]; I=33·6%; 31 estimates). P falciparum malaria detected and treated during pregnancy was also associated with stillbirth, but to a lesser extent (OR 1·47 [95% CI 1·13-1·92]; 19 estimates). Plasmodium vivax malaria increased the odds of stillbirth when detected at delivery (2·81 [0·77-10·22]; three estimates), but not when detected and treated during pregnancy (1·09 [0·76-1·57]; four estimates). The association between P falciparum malaria in pregnancy and stillbirth was two times greater in areas of low-to-intermediate endemicity than in areas of high endemicity (ratio of ORs 1·96 [95% CI 1·34-2·89]). Assuming all women with malaria are still parasitaemic at delivery, an estimated 20% of the 1 059 700 stillbirths in malaria-endemic sub-Saharan Africa are attributed to P falciparum malaria in pregnancy; the population attributable fraction decreases to 12%, assuming all women with malaria are treated during pregnancy.
INTERPRETATION
P falciparum and P vivax malaria in pregnancy both increase stillbirth risk. The risk of malaria-associated stillbirth is likely to increase as endemicity declines. There is a pressing need for context-appropriate, evidence-based interventions for malaria in pregnancy in low-endemicity settings.
FUNDING
Australian Commonwealth Government, National Health and Medical Research Council, Australian Research Council.
Topics: Female; Humans; Malaria; Pregnancy; Pregnancy Complications, Parasitic; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; Stillbirth
PubMed: 28967610
DOI: 10.1016/S2214-109X(17)30340-6 -
BMC Cardiovascular Disorders Oct 2020Since the knowledge of the symptoms of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) may reduce the decision time for patients to seek help in case of an AMI, we aimed to summarize...
BACKGROUND
Since the knowledge of the symptoms of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) may reduce the decision time for patients to seek help in case of an AMI, we aimed to summarize evidence on the knowledge of the AMI symptoms and the symptom attribution in case of an acute coronary syndrome (ACS).
METHODS
Therefore, we systematically searched the databases PubMed, CINAHL, Embase, and Cochrane Library for relevant studies published between January 1, 2008 and 2019 (last search August 1, 2019).
RESULTS
A total of 86 studies were included, with a composite sample size of 354,497 participants. The weighted mean of the knowledge scores for the symptoms of AMI of 14,420 participants from the general population, was 42.1% (when maximum score was considered 100%) and 69.5% for 7642 cardiac patients. There was a substantially better level of knowledge for six symptoms ('chest pain or discomfort', 'shortness of breath', 'pain or discomfort in arms or shoulders', 'feeling weak, lightheaded, or faint', 'pain or discomfort in the jaw, neck, or back', and 'sweating') (49.8-88.5%) compared to the four less obvious/atypical symptoms 'stomach or abdominal discomfort', 'nausea or vomiting', 'headache', and 'feeling of anxiety' (8.7-36.7%). Only 45.1% of 14,843 patients, who experienced ACS, have correctly attributed their symptoms to a cardiac cause.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, we found a moderate to good knowledge of "classic" and insufficient knowledge of less obvious symptoms of AMI. This might suggest that increasing knowledge about less obvious symptoms of AMI could be beneficial. It appears also important to address cardiac attribution of symptoms.
Topics: Acute Coronary Syndrome; Awareness; Female; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Health Literacy; Humans; Male; Myocardial Infarction; Patient Acceptance of Health Care
PubMed: 33054718
DOI: 10.1186/s12872-020-01714-8 -
American Journal of Preventive Medicine Aug 2022The proportion of fatal nontraffic injuries that involve high levels of alcohol use or alcohol intoxication was assessed by cause of injury to generate... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
INTRODUCTION
The proportion of fatal nontraffic injuries that involve high levels of alcohol use or alcohol intoxication was assessed by cause of injury to generate alcohol-attributable fractions. Updated alcohol-attributable fractions can contribute to improved estimates of the public health impact of excessive alcohol use.
METHODS
Peer-reviewed and gray literature for 1995-2019 on 15 causes of fatal nontraffic injuries in the U.S., Canada, or Mexico were systematically reviewed, and state data systems were queried for available estimates of fatalities with recorded blood alcohol concentration levels and proportions of decedents with blood alcohol concentrations ≥0.10 g/dL by cause of injury. For each injury cause, alcohol-attributable fractions across studies were synthesized by meta-analysis of single proportions using generalized linear mixed models.
RESULTS
In total, 60 published studies and 40 additional population-level data points from 6 state data systems were included. The meta-analyzed alcohol-attributable fractions by cause of injury are as follows: air-space transport (0.03), aspiration (0.24), child maltreatment (0.09), drowning (0.31), fall injuries (0.37), fire injuries (0.34), firearm injuries (0.24), homicide (0.29), hypothermia (0.29), motor vehicle nontraffic crashes (0.42), occupational and machine injuries (0.08), other road vehicle crashes (railroad trespasser injuries) (0.63), poisoning (not alcohol) (0.20), suicide (0.21), and water transport (0.27), yielding an overall median alcohol-attributable fraction of 0.27.
DISCUSSION
Excessive alcohol use is associated with substantial proportions of violent and nonviolent injury deaths. These findings can improve the data used for estimating alcohol-attributable injury deaths and inform the planning and implementation of evidence-based strategies (e.g., increasing alcohol taxes, regulating alcohol outlet density) to prevent them.
Topics: Accidents, Traffic; Alcohol Drinking; Blood Alcohol Content; Cause of Death; Child; Ethanol; Firearms; Humans; Wounds and Injuries; Wounds, Gunshot
PubMed: 35581102
DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2022.03.025 -
PloS One 2012Skin antisepsis is a simple and effective measure to prevent infections. The efficacy of chlorhexidine is actively discussed in the literature on skin antisepsis.... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
BACKGROUND
Skin antisepsis is a simple and effective measure to prevent infections. The efficacy of chlorhexidine is actively discussed in the literature on skin antisepsis. However, study outcomes due to chlorhexidine-alcohol combinations are often attributed to chlorhexidine alone. Thus, we sought to review the efficacy of chlorhexidine for skin antisepsis and the extent of a possible misinterpretation of evidence.
METHODS
We performed a systematic literature review of clinical trials and systematic reviews investigating chlorhexidine compounds for blood culture collection, vascular catheter insertion and surgical skin preparation. We searched PubMed, CINAHL, the Cochrane Library, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality website, several clinical trials registries and a manufacturer website. We extracted data on study design, antiseptic composition, and the following outcomes: blood culture contamination, catheter colonisation, catheter-related bloodstream infection and surgical site infection. We conducted meta-analyses of the clinical efficacy of chlorhexidine compounds and reviewed the appropriateness of the authors' attribution.
RESULTS
In all three application areas and for all outcomes, we found good evidence favouring chlorhexidine-alcohol over aqueous competitors, but not over competitors combined with alcohols. For blood cultures and surgery, we found no evidence supporting chlorhexidine alone. For catheters, we found evidence in support of chlorhexidine alone for preventing catheter colonisation, but not for preventing bloodstream infection. A range of 29 to 43% of articles attributed outcomes solely to chlorhexidine when the combination with alcohol was in fact used. Articles with ambiguous attribution were common (8-35%). Unsubstantiated recommendations for chlorhexidine alone instead of chlorhexidine-alcohol were identified in several practice recommendations and evidence-based guidelines.
CONCLUSIONS
Perceived efficacy of chlorhexidine is often in fact based on evidence for the efficacy of the chlorhexidine-alcohol combination. The role of alcohol has frequently been overlooked in evidence assessments. This has broader implications for knowledge translation as well as potential implications for patient safety.
Topics: Alcohols; Anti-Infective Agents, Local; Antisepsis; Blood Specimen Collection; Catheter-Related Infections; Chlorhexidine; Humans; Skin; Surgical Wound Infection; Treatment Outcome; Vascular Access Devices
PubMed: 22984485
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0044277 -
International Journal of Public Health Nov 2015Concerns about vaccination lead to under- and no-vaccination. Our objective is to synthesise and expose evidence on individuals' and communities' concerns about... (Review)
Review
OBJECTIVES
Concerns about vaccination lead to under- and no-vaccination. Our objective is to synthesise and expose evidence on individuals' and communities' concerns about vaccination to influence current debates on strategies to improve vaccination coverage in low- and middle-income countries.
METHODS
Systematic literature review till February 2014, following standard methods. Published and grey literature that focused on individuals and community concerns on childhood vaccinations were selected.
RESULTS
44 quantitative, qualitative and mixed-methods studies were included. Main reported concerns referred to perceptions of vaccine harms (e.g. attribution of fatal events). Other concerns included programme distrust (mainly due to rumours and conspiracies) and health system unfriendliness.
CONCLUSIONS
Concerns about vaccination are widespread and further worsen the challenges related to programmatic and health system barriers to vaccination. There is a disconnection between qualitative and quantitative research which misses the opportunity to quantify what is reported in the former. Strikingly, there is a wealth of evidence on concerns but much lesser evidence on interventions to address them. We welcome World Health Organization initiative to tackle vaccine hesitancy and call for the synthesis of evidence and production of guidance on strategies to address concerns on vaccination.
Topics: Consumer Behavior; Delivery of Health Care; Developing Countries; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Health Promotion; Humans; Internationality; Patient Acceptance of Health Care; Vaccination; Vaccines
PubMed: 26298444
DOI: 10.1007/s00038-015-0715-6 -
Systematic review of expert elicitation methods as a tool for source attribution of enteric illness.Foodborne Pathogens and Disease May 2015Expert elicitation is a useful tool to explore sources of uncertainty and to answer questions where data are expensive or difficult to collect. It has been used across a... (Review)
Review
Expert elicitation is a useful tool to explore sources of uncertainty and to answer questions where data are expensive or difficult to collect. It has been used across a variety of disciplines and represents an important method for estimating source attribution for enteric illness. A systematic review was undertaken to explore published expert elicitation studies, identify key considerations, and to make recommendations for designing an expert elicitation in the context of enteric illness source attribution. Fifty-nine studies were reviewed. Five key themes were identified: the expert panel including composition and recruitment; the pre-elicitation material, which clarifies the research question and provides training in uncertainty and probability; the choice of elicitation tool and method (e.g., questionnaires, surveys, and interviews); research design; and analysis of elicited data. Careful consideration of these themes is critical in designing and implementing an expert elicitation in order to reduce bias and produce the best possible results. While there are various epidemiological and microbiological methods available to explore source attribution of enteric illness, expert elicitation provides an opportunity to identify gaps in our understanding and where such studies are not feasible or available, represents the only possible method for synthesizing knowledge about transmission.
Topics: Databases, Factual; Food Contamination; Food Microbiology; Foodborne Diseases; Humans; Meta-Analysis as Topic; Uncertainty
PubMed: 25826450
DOI: 10.1089/fpd.2014.1844 -
Cadernos de Saude Publica Nov 2011This article reports on a systematic review of articles on food labeling and the prevention of obesity and overweight, in the MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Knowledge, Cochrane... (Review)
Review
This article reports on a systematic review of articles on food labeling and the prevention of obesity and overweight, in the MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Knowledge, Cochrane Library Plus, Food Science and Technology Abstracts, LILACS, and CINAHL databases. The DeCS/MeSH descriptors were obesity and food labeling. 207 articles were retrieved. Using inclusion and exclusion criteria, 14 articles were selected: 11 were on food labeling and its impact on final food product consumption; 2 were on fast food establishments; 1 on sensory attributes as compared to health recommendations; and 2 on follow-up of interventions. Labeling has a positive effect on final food product consumption, in contrast with fast food restaurants. Sensory attributes were more effective than recommendations on the labels. Follow-up of interventions confirmed the long-term effect of the target interventions.
Topics: Cross-Sectional Studies; Female; Food Labeling; Health Promotion; Humans; Male; Obesity; Overweight
PubMed: 22124486
DOI: 10.1590/s0102-311x2011001100002 -
Schizophrenia Research Aug 2020A prior meta-analyze using behavioral tasks demonstrated that individuals with subclinical delusional ideations jump to conclusion (JTC). The major aim of our systematic... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
A prior meta-analyze using behavioral tasks demonstrated that individuals with subclinical delusional ideations jump to conclusion (JTC). The major aim of our systematic review and meta-analyses was to highlight the relationship between cognitive biases and psychotic-like experiences (PLEs) when both are assessed by self-reports measures. In accordance with PRISMA guidelines, four electronic databases were searched. A total of 669 studies were identified, 39 articles met inclusion criteria for the systematic review and 27 for the random effects meta-analysis on healthy and UHR samples investigating cognitive biases (JTC, aberrant salience (ASB), attention to threat (ATB), externalizing bias (ETB), belief inflexibility (BIB), personalizing bias, aggression bias and need for closure). Effect size estimates were calculated using Pearson's correlation coefficients (r). In samples including both healthy and Ultra High Risk (UHR) individuals, positive psychotic-like experiences (PPLEs) were positively associated with ATB (r = 0.38), ETB (r = 0.35), BIB (r = 0.19), JTC (r = 0.10), and personalizing (r = 0.24). In community samples, PPLEs were positively associated with ASB (r = 0.62), ATB (r = 0.34), ETB (r = 0.36), BIB (r = 0.18), JTC (r = 0.11). In addition, negative PLEs were positively associated with ATB (r = 0.28), ETB (r = 0.37), BIB (r = 0.19) and ASB (r = 0.18). In UHR samples, positive associations were established between PPLEs and ATB (rs = 0.47), ETB (rs = 0.34), personalizing (r = 0.36) and the aggression bias (r = 0.35). Our results support cognitive models of psychosis considering the role of cognitive biases in the onset and the maintenance of psychotic symptoms. Cognitive interventions targeting cognitive biases could potentially prevent transition to psychosis in youth reporting PLEs and in UHR.
Topics: Adolescent; Bias; Cognition; Humans; Psychotic Disorders; Self Report; Thinking
PubMed: 32595098
DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2020.06.016 -
Trauma, Violence & Abuse Oct 2023In the last two decades, researchers have been progressively investigating the impact of interparental conflict (IPC) on young adults romantic relationships. This...
In the last two decades, researchers have been progressively investigating the impact of interparental conflict (IPC) on young adults romantic relationships. This systematic review aimed to synthesize literature on IPC and romantic relationship outcomes among young adults and highlight mechanisms found in this link. Following the PRISMA protocol, 3232 studies were identified using Boolean searches on ProQuest, PubMed, EBSCOhost, Jstor, Cochrane, and Google Scholar, and 17 met the eligibility criteria. To be included, in addition to having IPC and romantic relationship outcomes as variables, studies had to be quantitative in design, have a mean sample age of 18-25, include only participants in romantic relationships at the time of the study, and be published in English with full text available. The review found that IPC is associated with negative conflict management, both perpetration and victimization of aggression, worse communication, negative conflict behaviors, and poor relationship quality. Other outcomes like relationship satisfaction, commitment, as well as mediator variables in the link between IPC and young adult romantic relationship outcomes, such as attitudes towards marriage and conflict attributions, yielded varied results. Several shortcomings in the methodology of the reviewed articles, such as the research sample and measures, were discovered. To deal with the impact of IPC on offspring's romantic relationships, preventive interventions should be designed and evaluated, and more research with different variables and study designs, with more men, other ethnicities, and more representative sample frames are needed to detect crucial mediators and obtain reliable and generalizable results.
Topics: Male; Humans; Young Adult; Family Conflict; Interpersonal Relations; Aggression; Marriage; Bullying
PubMed: 35732581
DOI: 10.1177/15248380221109787