The relationships between sediment findings and culture results and the presence of proteinuria in canine urine samples

OBJECTIVES

To assess relationships between urine sediment and microbial culture findings and the presence of proteinuria in canine urine samples, and to assess the change in the percentage of proteinuric samples and urine protein-to-creatinine ratio when urine abnormalities resolve.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Canine urine samples collected via cystocentesis and submitted for culture and contemporaneous urinalysis (including urine protein-to-creatinine ratio) were retrospectively identified. Dogs receiving corticosteroids were excluded. Associations between haematuria (red blood cells>5/high-power field), pyuria (white blood cells>5/high-power field), presence of microorganisms on microscopy, active sediment, and positive culture and proteinuria (urine protein-to-creatinine ratio>0.5) were investigated. Patient characteristics were considered possible confounders. In dogs with repeat urinalysis, the associations between active sediment and positive culture resolution on proteinuria and urine protein-to-creatinine ratio were assessed.

RESULTS

One hundred and ninety-two of 491 samples were proteinuric (39.1%). Age was positively associated with proteinuria. In the multivariable analysis corrected for age, active sediment was the only variable significantly associated with proteinuria (adjusted odds ratio: 2.12; 95% confidence interval: 1.44 to 3.11); however, only 49.8% of samples with active sediment were proteinuric. Neither resolution of active sediment nor positive culture were associated with reduced proportions of proteinuric samples (from 57.9% to 42.1% and from 40.0% to 25.0%, respectively) or significant reductions in urine protein-to-creatinine ratio (median change: -0.16 and -0.14, respectively).

CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE

Attributing proteinuria to urinalysis abnormalities or a positive urine culture in canine cystocentesis samples is not supported by our findings, and could result in alternative causes of proteinuria (e.g. renal proteinuria) being overlooked.

Food for all: designing sustainable and secure future seafood systems

Food from the sea can make a larger contribution to healthy and sustainable diets, and to addressing hunger and malnutrition, through improvements in production, distribution and equitable access to wild harvest and mariculture resources and products. The supply and consumption of seafood is influenced by a range of 'drivers' including ecosystem change and ocean regulation, the influence of corporations and evolving consumer demand, as well as the growing focus on the importance of seafood for meeting nutritional needs. These drivers need to be examined in a holistic way to develop an informed understanding of the needs, potential impacts and solutions that align seafood production and consumption with relevant 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This paper uses an evidence-based narrative approach to examine how the anticipated global trends for seafood might be experienced by people in different social, geographical and economic situations over the next ten years. Key drivers influencing seafood within the global food system are identified and used to construct a future scenario based on our current trajectory (Business-as-usual 2030). Descriptive pathways and actions are then presented for a more sustainable future scenario that strives towards achieving the SDGs as far as technically possible (More sustainable 2030). Prioritising actions that not only sustainably produce more seafood, but consider aspects of access and utilisation, particularly for people affected by food insecurity and malnutrition, is an essential part of designing sustainable and secure future seafood systems.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11160-021-09663-x.

Food for all: designing sustainable and secure future seafood systems

Food from the sea can make a larger contribution to healthy and sustainable diets, and to addressing hunger and malnutrition, through improvements in production, distribution and equitable access to wild harvest and mariculture resources and products. The supply and consumption of seafood is influenced by a range of 'drivers' including ecosystem change and ocean regulation, the influence of corporations and evolving consumer demand, as well as the growing focus on the importance of seafood for meeting nutritional needs. These drivers need to be examined in a holistic way to develop an informed understanding of the needs, potential impacts and solutions that align seafood production and consumption with relevant 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This paper uses an evidence-based narrative approach to examine how the anticipated global trends for seafood might be experienced by people in different social, geographical and economic situations over the next ten years. Key drivers influencing seafood within the global food system are identified and used to construct a future scenario based on our current trajectory (Business-as-usual 2030). Descriptive pathways and actions are then presented for a more sustainable future scenario that strives towards achieving the SDGs as far as technically possible (More sustainable 2030). Prioritising actions that not only sustainably produce more seafood, but consider aspects of access and utilisation, particularly for people affected by food insecurity and malnutrition, is an essential part of designing sustainable and secure future seafood systems.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11160-021-09663-x.

Accessing National Health Service Stop Smoking Services in the UK: a COM-B analysis of barriers and facilitators perceived by smokers, ex-smokers and stop smoking advisors

OBJECTIVE

Smokers who access free National Health Service (NHS) Stop Smoking Services (SSS) in the UK are four times more likely to stop smoking, yet uptake of the services has been in decline in recent years. Evidence was collated to explore the beliefs of smokers, ex-smokers and Stop Smoking Advisors (SSAs) about SSS and the barriers and facilitators to access.

STUDY DESIGN

Mixed-methods design including i) a search of the literature; ii) a cross-sectional online questionnaire completed by 38 smokers and ex-smokers; and iii) semistructured interviews with 5 SSAs.

METHODS

PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Prospero and the NIHR Portfolio were searched in October 2017 to identify relevant studies. Smokers and ex-smokers were recruited to the online questionnaire via Public Health websites and social media in Warwickshire. SSAs identified via Public Health Warwickshire were invited to take part in an interview conducted over the telephone. Findings were collated and analysed using the COM-B ('Capability', 'Opportunity', 'Motivation' and 'Behaviour') model framework.

RESULTS

A range of practical and psychological or belief-based barriers and facilitators to accessing SSS were identified within all the components of the COM-B model, aside from physical capability, for example; 'Psychological capability', such as lack of understanding about what the service offers; 'Reflective motivation', such as lack of confidence in service efficacy; and 'Social opportunity', such as recommendations from healthcare professionals to attend. Suggestions and consideration on how future tobacco control intervention and public health messages can address these components are reported.

CONCLUSIONS

Public health interventions and campaigns may benefit from focussing on addressing the well-known perceived barriers and facilitators smokers experience, in particular focussing on the components of the COM-B that have been identified as being important to increase the uptake of SSS.

Decadal-Scale Forecasting of Climate Drivers for Marine Applications

Climate influences marine ecosystems on a range of time scales, from weather-scale (days) through to climate-scale (hundreds of years). Understanding of interannual to decadal climate variability and impacts on marine industries has received less attention. Predictability up to 10 years ahead may come from large-scale climate modes in the ocean that can persist over these time scales. In Australia the key drivers of climate variability affecting the marine environment are the Southern Annular Mode, the Indian Ocean Dipole, the El Niño/Southern Oscillation, and the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation, each has phases that are associated with different ocean circulation patterns and regional environmental variables. The roles of these drivers are illustrated with three case studies of extreme events-a marine heatwave in Western Australia, a coral bleaching of the Great Barrier Reef, and flooding in Queensland. Statistical and dynamical approaches are described to generate forecasts of climate drivers that can subsequently be translated to useful information for marine end users making decisions at these time scales. Considerable investment is still needed to support decadal forecasting including improvement of ocean-atmosphere models, enhancement of observing systems on all scales to support initiation of forecasting models, collection of important biological data, and integration of forecasts into decision support tools. Collaboration between forecast developers and marine resource sectors-fisheries, aquaculture, tourism, biodiversity management, infrastructure-is needed to support forecast-based tactical and strategic decisions that reduce environmental risk over annual to decadal time scales.