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The evaluation of usual food intake is of central importance in nutritional epidemiology studies. Some authors propose the usual dietary recall (UDR) as a viable method for assessing usual food intake; however, its characteristics remain poorly understood. The objective of this study is to review the literature on the application and performance characteristics of the UDR as a dietary assessment method. Electronic search strategies were conducted using the Excerpta Medica Database, Publisher Medline, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature, Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) Periodicals Portal, and Google Scholar. Studies published in Portuguese, English, and Spanish were included, with no restrictions on publication date. Eligible studies included those utilising the UDR in experimental or observational designs, as well as literature reviews. A total of 116 studies were included in the review. The most common application method (n 34; 29·3 %) involved reporting foods typically consumed over a 24-h period. However, most studies (n 66; 56·9 %) did not specify the method for applying the UDR. Key limitations identified included under or overestimation (n 9; 7·8 %), memory bias (n 7; 6·0 %) and the lack of instrument validation (n 5; 4·3 %). Findings show that the UDR lacks a standardised application method, and its validity remains unconfirmed. Future research should establish a standardised protocol and assess its psychometric properties to reduce errors and biases, ensuring accurate dietary assessments in nutritional epidemiology.
Early in the SARS–CoV-2 pandemic, most jurisdictions implemented mandatory face covering policies across healthcare settings. This intervention, which lasted multiple years, was unprecedented in psychiatry. Masks may affect the delivery of mental healthcare, given its reliance on nuanced communication and establishing a therapeutic alliance.
Aims
This scoping review aimed to provide an overview of the current literature concerning the impact of face masks in mental health settings beyond infection control and identify research gaps to guide future research and policy.
Method
Systematic searches were completed in the MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, Scopus and CINAHL databases on 14 August 2024. Articles were eligible if they described peer-reviewed empirical studies involving people with mental disorders or mental health clinicians that reported on impacts of face coverings.
Results
Twenty-eight studies were selected for inclusion, involving 5385 participants. There was considerable heterogeneity among studies. Negative effects of face masks were reported in 26 studies in at least one domain. Themes from the survey-based literature included face masks negatively affecting communication, the therapeutic relationship and overall assessment quality. Experimental studies using emotion recognition tasks showed that people with mental disorders were disadvantaged by masks when interpreting emotions from facial expressions. The most commonly studied population was people with autism spectrum disorder. Children and people with severe or acute mental illness were underrepresented. Only two studies expressly recruited psychiatrists.
Conclusions
Policy makers should be aware of adverse impacts of mask-wearing in mental health settings and consider these in evolving risk–benefit analyses. Further research is needed to establish the extent of impacts on population subgroups.
Despite growing front-of-pack labelling (FOPL) policy implementation in low-and middle-income countries (LMIC), research approaches for evaluating these policies remain poorly characterized, hindering evidence-based policy development and methodological gaps. This study explored research approaches, frameworks, and methods used in assessing FOPL policy implementation and response in LMIC.
Design:
Systematic search of five databases, including Medline, Web of Science, Scopus, Global Health, and CINAHL, for peer-reviewed articles published between 2014-2025. Studies on FOPL policy implementation or response in LMIC were included. Data on study characteristics, methods, and findings were extracted and synthesized.
Setting:
LMIC.
Participants:
All populations.
Results:
Thirty-one studies revealed significant research imbalances. Implementation studies (n=3) used qualitative approaches with policy theories, while response studies (n=28) predominantly employed quantitative methods including surveys, experiments, and modeling. Pronounced geographical bias emerged, with 24 studies conducted in Latin America while other LMIC regions remained underrepresented. Common limitations included non-representative sampling, self-reported data, and short timeframes. Mandatory FOPL policies achieved higher compliance than voluntary schemes, though implementation faced challenges including inadequate monitoring, limited resources, and industry resistance. Consumer awareness was generally high but varied significantly across population groups, revealing substantial equity gaps.
Conclusions:
This review reveals critical gaps in FOPL implementation research in LMIC, with evidence heavily skewed toward consumer responses and geographically concentrated in Latin America. Future research should prioritize implementation science approaches, geographical diversity, and understanding policy processes in resource-constrained settings to develop effective, context-appropriate FOPL policies.
Chapter 1, the introductory chapter, outlines the development of psychotraumatology or traumatic stress studies, in which the author was also partly involved. It traces how it came about that the author Brave Heart and others have been presenting concepts on historical trauma since the early 2000s. An operationalized definition with two basic criteria and five consecutive criteria is presented. The following eight contexts from all parts of the world are presented and their selection justified. The first four are typical configurations of historical trauma because they fulfil all the criteria without exception. The last four historical traumas fulfil only some of the criteria, but are each particularly revealing, for example when it comes to the minimization of the victim narrative for political reasons. The method of the coupled scoping review for the book is explained and the target groups of readership are described.
Historical trauma is a relatively new yet crucial area of study within psychology, history, and related disciplines. This book introduces the concept of historical trauma by providing a comprehensive overview of the latest vocabulary, seminal psychological concepts, and quantitative research in the field. By drawing together cross-disciplinary threads and examining eight global contexts of historical trauma, the author highlights a wide-ranging and rigorous body of research that further adds to our clinical understanding of the possible long-term effects of collective trauma. The chapters also explore remedies against the historical effects of trauma, which tend to go far beyond psycho-therapeutic interventions, especially when they are dedicated to the culture of remembrance or empowerment for disadvantaged young people. By revealing a wealth of new ideas that point to a pivotal moment in the evolution of social sciences, this volume can help transform the way psychologists serve victimized communities around the world.
This scoping review provides an overview of the impact of fruit and vegetable (FAV) consumption on cognitive function in adolescents and young adults between January 2014 and February 2024. A comprehensive search across six databases, CINAHL, PubMed-MEDLINE, ProQuest, Web of Science, Scopus, and Embase, identified 5,181 articles, of which six met the inclusion criteria after deduplication and screening. This scoping review focused on individuals aged 11–35 years in schools, colleges, universities, and communities. Following a descriptive and narrative synthesis of the data, tables and figures were used to present the findings. Across the six included studies, most consistently demonstrated a positive association between higher fruit and vegetable (FAV) intake and improved cognitive performance among adolescents and young adults. This association was evident in both cross-sectional and longitudinal studies, with stronger effects observed for whole fruits and vegetables high in fibre and polyphenols. Cognitive domains positively impacted included psychomotor speed, memory, attention, and mood. However, findings varied by type of food and cognitive domain; while whole FAVs were generally beneficial, results for fruit juice were mixed—some studies showed acute benefits. Differences in study designs, dietary assessment tools, and cognitive measures contributed to variability. Despite these inconsistencies, the overall trend supports a beneficial role of FAV consumption in promoting cognitive health during adolescence and early adulthood. This review demonstrates that increased fruit and vegetable consumption is consistently linked to improved cognitive function in adolescents and young adults. However, further research is needed to establish its long-term effects on cognitive ageing and disease prevention
Phlebotomine sand flies are found across multiple regions of Thailand, with growing recognition of their role in transmitting zoonotic pathogens. Environmental factors, including climate variability and vector ecology, may influence their distribution and activity, contributing to the potential spread of zoonotic pathogens in Southeast Asia. However, comprehensive data on sand fly distribution in Thailand remain limited. To address this gap, a systematic review was conducted following PRISMA guidelines. Out of 112 records retrieved, 33 met the inclusion criteria and quality assessment for further analysis. As per results, sand flies are widespread in Thailand, with a high level of species diversity comprising 42 species of 6 different genera. However, several provinces lack data on the presence and distribution of sand flies. Eleven species were identified as the overall abundant species throughout the studies from January 2007 to June 2025 and grouped by abundance: low-abundance species (Sergentomyia barguesae, Sergentomyia phadangensis, Sergentomyia barraudi and Sergentomyia indica), abundant but understudied species (Sergentomyia sylvatica, Sergentomyia anodontis and Neopulpus vietnamensis) and most abundant species (Sergentomyia hodgsoni, Sergentomyia gemmea, Sergentomyia iyengari and Sergentomyia khawi). From the most abundant species, S. khawi tested positive for several pathogens, such as Leishmania spp., Trypanosoma spp., Bartonella spp. and orbivirus. Besides, S. khawi has been shown to exhibit human-biting behaviour through the analysis of blood meal. These findings raise concerns about its potential role in pathogen transmission, especially concerning zoonotic pathogens. However, vector competence remains unproven for some of these pathogens, suggesting the need for further research.
This scoping review directs attention to artificial intelligence–mediated informal language learning (AI-ILL), defined as autonomous, self-directed, out-of-class second and foreign language (L2) learning practices involving AI tools. Through analysis of 65 empirical studies published up to mid-April 2025, it maps the landscape of this emerging field and identifies the key antecedents and outcomes. Findings revealed a nascent field characterized by exponential growth following ChatGPT’s release, geographical concentration in East Asia, methodological dominance of cross-sectional designs, and limited theoretical foundations. Analysis also demonstrated that learners’ AI-mediated informal learning practices are influenced by cognitive, affective, and sociocontextual factors, while producing significant benefits across linguistic, affective, and cognitive dimensions, particularly enhanced speaking proficiency and reduced communication anxiety. This review situates AI-ILL as an evolving subfield within intelligent CALL and suggests important directions for future research to understand the potential of constantly emerging AI technologies in supporting autonomous L2 development beyond the classroom.
This scoping review investigates the complex landscape of fake news research, focusing on its link with attitudinal polarization and identifying key themes in the literature. Our objectives included mapping the main themes in fake news literature, analyzing how these themes connect, examining how polarization is conceptualized across studies, and how fake news and attitudinal polarization are related. Through an extensive theme analysis of fake news research sourced from SCOPUS and Web of Science databases, we identified four major thematic areas: (1) the influence of technologies and platforms on fake news, (2) user engagement and behavioral responses to fake news, (3) fake news characteristics and their social consequences, and (4) strategies for fake news detection and countermeasures. In-depth analysis of 20 selected peer-reviewed papers revealed significant inconsistencies in the operationalization of both fake news and polarization and in the definitions of polarization. Regarding evidence on fake news’ influence on polarization, mixed results are found, with some studies indicating attitude reinforcement, while others find negligible effects. This scoping review highlights the need for standardized methodologies to clarify fake news’ role in attitudinal polarization and societal division, calling for a unified framework in fake news and polarization research to advance understanding of fake news’ societal impact.
This scoping review aims to synthesize the literature on pediatric health technology assessments (HTAs) and map out the challenges of assessing new technologies for use in children, with a particular focus on pharmaceutical interventions.
Methods
Conducted in accordance with the Joanna Briggs Institute Methodology, this scoping review addressed HTAs in the pediatric domain through searches of PubMed, Embase, Web of Science Core Collection, and EconLit through 22 January 2024, as well as the gray literature. Sources were excluded if they (i) were a clinical trial investigating a specific technology or an HTA of that technology, (ii) did not address the challenges of HTAs, or (iii) had no relevance to pediatrics. Two authors performed screening and data extraction independently and in duplicate.
Results
One hundred and three reports were included. Of these, sixty were full journal articles, twenty-three were conference abstracts, and twenty were guidelines, reports, and other documents. Two important themes emerged from this work. The first was the unique position of children within society and the resulting difficulty of incorporating them within a population-wide HTA system. The second was the uncertainty that characterized pediatric HTAs due to data constraints and either a lack of guidance by HTA bodies or variations in guidance between bodies.
Conclusions
Many factors inherent to children, including the heterogeneity of pediatric disease populations, long-term outcomes, and children’s distinct social positions, render conducting pediatric HTAs challenging. Innovative approaches are required to address these challenges and respond to the needs of pediatric populations.
Community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) is a significant public health concern, disproportionately affecting socioeconomically disadvantaged populations, including individuals experiencing poverty, homelessness, incarceration, and injection drug use. This scoping review synthesizes existing literature on factors influencing CA-MRSA occurrence and community transmission in these populations. A comprehensive search of PubMed, MEDLINE, and Scopus for studies published between January 2000 and February 2024 identified 3,223 articles, of which 40 met the inclusion criteria. Findings indicate that the CA-MRSA burden remains high, with community transmission influenced by factors, such as limited access to hygiene resources, structural barriers to care, and social network dynamics. Surveillance and intervention strategies remain largely healthcare-focused, with limited data on community-level transmission and risk. This review highlights the urgent need for targeted public health interventions and the adoption of expanded, innovative surveillance methods, such as genomic epidemiology, to better track and mitigate CA-MRSA transmission in vulnerable populations. As antibiotic resistance continues to rise, future research should prioritize longitudinal studies and community-based surveillance to develop effective, population-specific infection prevention, and control strategies.
Critical interpretive synthesis was introduced in 2006 to address various shortcomings of systematic reviews such as their limitations in synthesizing heterogeneous data, integrating diverse study types, and generating theoretical insights. This review sought to outline the methodological process of conducting critical interpretive syntheses by identifying the methods currently in use, mapping the processes that have been used to date, and highlighting directions for further research. To achieve this, a scoping review of critical interpretive syntheses published between 2006 and 2023 was conducted. Initial searches identified 1628 publications and after removal of duplicates and exclusions, 212 reviews were included in the study. Most reviews focused on health-related subjects. Authors chose to utilize the method due to its iterative, inductive, and recursive nature. Both question-based and topic-based reviews were conducted. Literature searches relied on electronic databases and reference chaining. Mapping to the original six-phase model showed most variability in use of sampling and quality assessment phases, which were each done in 50.7% of reviews. Data extraction utilized a data extraction table. Synthesis involved constant comparison, critique, and consolidation of themes into constructs, and a synthesizing argument. Refining critical interpretive synthesis methodology and its best practices are important for optimizing the utility and impact and ensuring findings are relevant and actionable for informing policy, practice, and future research.
Based on promising preliminary results from clinical trials, it seems likely that psychedelic substances (classic serotonergic psychedelics, such as psilocybin, and entactogens, such as MDMA) will be introduced into psychiatry as psychedelic-assisted therapy. This also raises a range of ethical questions that urgently need to be addressed before widespread roll-out in society. This scoping review fills a gap in the literature by providing an overview of these ethical issues using a systematic search, presentation, and descriptive analysis of ethical issues in psychedelic-assisted treatments. It includes peer-reviewed studies pertaining to human study participants and psychiatric patients (population), which discuss ethical issues (concept) of psychedelic treatments (context) in clinical trials and other clinical applications. The systematic search included several databases: MEDLINE, PsycInfo, CINAHL, HeinOnline, and PsycArticles. The search strategy, including all identified keywords and index terms, was adapted for each included database. The search was completed in June 2025 and studies published until then in any language were included. After an iterative process of inductive and deductive coding of ethical issues, the scoping review comprises seven themes related to the ethics of psychedelic-assisted treatments: (1) safety and patient well-being, (2) therapeutic relationships, (3) informed consent, (4) equity and access, (5) research ethics, (6) special contexts, and (7) societal and cultural implications. The results can be used to inform and stimulate further discussion and in-depth research on the ethics of psychedelic-assisted treatments, possibly leading to more nuanced debate surrounding a safer and more ethical implementation of psychedelic-assisted treatments in the future.
Extended reality may offer a convenient and effective method of increasing well-being within the wider healthcare workforce and particularly for those working in the mental health sector who are subject to high levels of stress because of increased workload, high levels of staff turnover and limited resources.
Aims
This scoping review aims to identify and assimilate relevant literature pertaining to the use of extended reality to improve healthcare practitioners’ well-being.
Method
Databases (MEDLINE, CINAHL, Cochrane and PubMed) and grey literature were searched for relevant articles using established methodology and reported as per the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) extension for scoping reviews.
Results
A total of 280 articles were yielded by the search strategy, with 13 relevant articles selected by two independent reviewers in a blinded process. Studies demonstrated a heterogenous pool of outcome measurement modalities, intervention modalities and duration and frequency of the interventions. Of all the studies, 85% note a positive impact on healthcare practitioner well-being but studies have limited comparability because of heterogeneity. Interventions were engaging but the practicality of implementing such technologies into a finance- and time-limited healthcare environment will be a challenge.
Conclusions
Whilst extended reality is a promising well-being intervention, there is a paucity of literature relating to its effect on mental health practitioners’ well-being, and further studies in this area are required.
More than 116 million people in Africa live with mental health conditions. However, many African countries lack the infrastructure, training and workforce to effectively manage psychiatric emergencies. This has led to overuse of controversial practices such as physical and chemical restraint and involuntary seclusion, often violating patient rights. We conducted a scoping review of restraint and seclusion practices and their impacts in African clinical settings using the PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, PsycInfo and ProQuest databases. Titles/abstracts and full texts were reviewed for inclusion using the Covidence platform, and 29 studies were included in the final extraction. Restraint and/or seclusion were employed to manage aggression, enable involuntary treatment or prevent self-harm. Patients found restraint and seclusion to be dehumanizing, a cause of posttraumatic stress and a barrier to future help-seeking. Healthcare workers described inadequate training, overuse of restraint and seclusion, injuries and emotional distress after employing these treatments. Further research, intervention development and policy reform are urgently needed to promote humane and patient-centered psychiatric care, including verbal de-escalation training, in underresourced healthcare systems.
There are critical gaps within implementation science concerning health equity, particularly for minoritised ethnic groups. Implementation framework adaptations are important to facilitate health equity, which is especially relevant for psychiatry due to ethnic inequities in mental health; however, the range of potential adaptations has yet to be synthesised.
Aims
This systematic scoping review aimed to identify and map the characteristics of adaptations to implementation frameworks for minority ethnic groups to improve health equity.
Method
Bibliographic searches of the MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO and CINAHL databases were conducted, spanning the period from 2004 to February 2024 for descriptions of implementation frameworks adapted for minority ethnic groups. The characteristics of those meeting the criteria were narratively synthesised.
Results
Of the 2947 papers screened, six met the eligibility criteria. Three different types of implementation frameworks were adapted across the six papers: evaluation, process and determinant frameworks. Most of the adaptations were made by expanding the original framework, and by integrating it with another model, theory or framework with an equity focus. The adaptations primarily focused on putting equity at the forefront of all stages of implementation from intervention selection to implementation sustainability. No studies measured the effectiveness of the adapted framework.
Conclusions
The findings demonstrate that implementation frameworks are modifiable, and different elements can be adapted according to the implementation framework type. This review provides a starting point for how researchers and healthcare providers can adapt existing implementation frameworks to promote health equity for minoritised groups across a range of healthcare settings.
Since 2001, the world has encountered an increase in terrorist attacks on civilian targets, during which conventional as well as unconventional modalities are being used. Terrorist attacks put immediate strains on health care systems, whilst they may also directly threaten the safety of first responders, health care workers, and health care facilities.
Study Objective:
This scoping review aimed to systematically map the existing research on terrorist attacks targeting health care facilities, health care workers, and first responders, and to identify opportunities to improve future research and health care response to terrorist attacks.
Methods:
A scoping review was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) extension for scoping reviews. A systematic search for relevant literature was conducted through electronic databases including PubMed, Cochrane, and Embase. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied to check eligibility. Extracted data from the articles included the title, first author, year of publication, journal, study design, number of attacks, number of injured, number of fatalities, target type, and weapon modalities. Furthermore, methodological quality assessment was performed.
Results:
The initial search within three major databases yielded 4,656 articles, including 2,777, 1,843, and 36 articles from PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library, respectively. Finally, 11 studies were included, which were all database reviews.
Conclusions:
This scoping review included 11 studies focusing on terrorist attacks against health care facilities, health care workers, and first responders. Nearly all studies were exclusively based on the Global Terrorism Database (GTD). An increase of attacks on health care-related targets was consistently reported by all studies in this review, but there were significant discrepancies in reported outcomes. In order to improve counter-terrorism preparedness and the future protection of health care workers, counter-terrorism medicine (CTM) research may benefit from a more standardized and transparent approach to document and analyze terrorist attacks, as well as the inclusion of additional databases other than the GTD.
Implementing changes to digital health systems in real-life contexts poses many challenges. Design as a field has the potential to tackle some of these. This article illustrates how design knowledge, through published literature, is currently referenced in relation to the implementation of digital health. To map design literature’s contribution to this field, we conducted a scoping review on digital health implementation publications and their use of references from nine prominent design journals. The search in Scopus and Web of Science yielded 382 digital health implementation publications, of which 70 were included for analysis. From those, we extracted data on publication characteristics and how they cited the design literature. The 70 publications cited 58 design articles, whose characteristics were also extracted. The results show that design is mainly cited to provide information about specific design methods and approaches, guidelines for using them and evidence of their benefits. Examples of referenced methods and approaches were co-design, prototyping, human-centered design, service design, understanding user needs and design thinking. The results thus show that design knowledge primarily contributed to digital health implementation with insights into methods and approaches. In addition, our method showcases a new way for understanding how design literature influences other fields.
Some individuals experience abnormally persistent and intense symptoms of grief that significantly interfere with daily functioning. This condition has been described using terms such as complicated or prolonged grief and prolonged grief disorder (PGD).
Aims
To identify the availability of evidence addressing a range of policy relevant issues related to grief, bereavement and PGD. In this paper we focus on the availability of evidence from systematic reviews.
Method
We searched 12 databases and the websites of 18 grief- or bereavement-related organisations. Using key characteristics extracted from included reviews, we produced a high-level overview of the available evidence that enabled potential research gaps to be identified.
Results
We identified 212 reviews – 103 focused on people’s experiences of grief/bereavement including service use; 22 reported on PGD prevalence, 42 on PGD risk factors, 37 on factors that influence grief more broadly and 80 on the effectiveness of grief-related interventions. Fifty-five reviews focused on multiple issues of interest. Half of reviews focused on a specific cause/type of death (n = 108). Of these reviews, most focused on three main causes/types of death: a specific health condition or terminal illness (n = 36), perinatal loss (n = 34) and suicide (n = 20).
Conclusions
We identified a large number of reviews, but key evidence gaps exist, particularly in relation to intervention cost-effectiveness and social, organisational or structural-level interventions that are needed for addressing inequities and other modifiable factors that can impair grieving and potentially increase the risk of PGD.
Poorly managed inpatient flow can lead to adverse health outcomes, including increased mortality and readmission rates. In neurosurgery, optimizing inpatient flow is crucial to improving patient experience and outcomes, but the factors influencing it are unclear. A preliminary analysis revealed suboptimal average length of stay (ALOS) and expected length of stay (ELOS) rates – key metrics used to assess inpatient flow – across Alberta, Canada. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the current state of inpatient flow in Alberta’s neurosurgical care and explore strategies for enhancement.
Methods:
This study used mixed methods: a rapid scoping review and a retrospective cohort study. The rapid scoping review synthesized peer-reviewed and gray literature (after a three-stage screening process) to identify factors impacting neurosurgery inpatient flow across jurisdictions. The cohort study analyzed Alberta’s adult neurosurgical patient data from 2009 to 2019 to explore how patient- and system-level factors relate to ALOS/ELOS rates.
Results:
Nine of the 391 screened articles were included in the review. Three main themes emerged influencing neurosurgery inpatient flow: interdisciplinary care pathways, introducing new roles and identification of risk factors. Building on these themes, patient- and system-level factors impacting ALOS/ELOS were explored. ALOS/ELOS rates varied among the five Alberta Health Services zones, with Rural Zone 1 having the highest and significantly different rate. Age, sex, zone and comorbidities significantly accounted for differences in ALOS/ELOS rates (p < 0.001).
Conclusions:
Neurosurgery patients in Alberta are experiencing longer hospital stays than expected. Several areas requiring further research have been identified, along with potential strategies to enhance patient care and outcomes.