Linking tree growth rate, damage repair, and susceptibility to a genus-specific pest infestation

Pest preference and subsequent susceptibility of a host individual is likely related to previous growth patterns in that host. Emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire) is a pestiferous beetle introduced to North America from Asia. While all species of ash are susceptible to attack, some individual trees appear to survive infestation. We selected ash trees in southeastern Michigan, collected cores and categorized trees as high tolerance to emerald ash borer attack (high overall health, low crown dieback), low tolerance (low overall health, high crown dieback) and intermediate tolerance (in-between the other categories). We artificially wounded trees and measured wound closure after 3 years. Ring width indices were not correlated between high and low tolerance trees. Regression slopes comparing growth and years were significantly different between the three tolerance categories, with high tolerance trees having the steepest slope. Wound closure was greatest in high tolerance trees. High tolerance trees demonstrating more rapid (steeper regression slope), consistent (lower variance), and effective (greater wound closure) growth. Those vigorously growing trees likely had more capacity to repair damage caused by emerald ash borer, leading to healthier trees in our categorization. Linking previous host growth patterns to health may have implications related to identifying individual trees potentially tolerant to attack

Impact of opioid-free analgesia on pain severity and patient satisfaction after discharge from surgery: multispecialty, prospective cohort study in 25 countries

Background: Balancing opioid stewardship and the need for adequate analgesia following discharge after surgery is challenging. This study aimed to compare the outcomes for patients discharged with opioid versus opioid-free analgesia after common surgical procedures.Methods: This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study collected data from patients undergoing common acute and elective general surgical, urological, gynaecological, and orthopaedic procedures. The primary outcomes were patient-reported time in severe pain measured on a numerical analogue scale from 0 to 100% and patient-reported satisfaction with pain relief during the first week following discharge. Data were collected by in-hospital chart review and patient telephone interview 1 week after discharge.Results: The study recruited 4273 patients from 144 centres in 25 countries; 1311 patients (30.7%) were prescribed opioid analgesia at discharge. Patients reported being in severe pain for 10 (i.q.r. 1-30)% of the first week after discharge and rated satisfaction with analgesia as 90 (i.q.r. 80-100) of 100. After adjustment for confounders, opioid analgesia on discharge was independently associated with increased pain severity (risk ratio 1.52, 95% c.i. 1.31 to 1.76; P < 0.001) and re-presentation to healthcare providers owing to side-effects of medication (OR 2.38, 95% c.i. 1.36 to 4.17; P = 0.004), but not with satisfaction with analgesia (beta coefficient 0.92, 95% c.i. -1.52 to 3.36; P = 0.468) compared with opioid-free analgesia. Although opioid prescribing varied greatly between high-income and low- and middle-income countries, patient-reported outcomes did not.Conclusion: Opioid analgesia prescription on surgical discharge is associated with a higher risk of re-presentation owing to side-effects of medication and increased patient-reported pain, but not with changes in patient-reported satisfaction. Opioid-free discharge analgesia should be adopted routinely

Applying Wildlife Conservation Tourism to Marine Endangered Species: Identifying Indicators for Triple Bottom Line Sustainability

Thesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2016-06University of Washington Abstract Applying Wildlife Conservation Tourism to Marine Endangered Species: Identifying Indicators for Triple Bottom Line Sustainability Kayla N. Boyes Chair of the Supervisory Committee: Dr. Marc L. Miller School of Marine and Environmental Affairs As global marine biodiversity rapidly decreases, it has become apparent that traditional ecological conservation practices that discourage human interaction with the natural environment are alone insufficient for long term wildlife and ecosystem protection. Tourism and recreation has emerged as an underutilized tool that can be applied in conjunction with existing marine wildlife management strategies. In this thesis, the field of wildlife conservation tourism (WCT) is established as an ecological conservation strategy that promotes and prioritizes endangered species conservation through meaningful interactions with tourists. WCT has great potential to provide critical educational and financial support for marine wildlife conservation while also providing an enriching and inspiring experience for tourists and a viable livelihood for tourism brokers. Framed within the human-artifactual-natural (HANS) system, this thesis identifies triple bottom line indicators that can be used to evaluate the efficacy of WCT enterprises to ensure sustainable marine wildlife management. The goal of this thesis is to utilize interdisciplinary literature to identify and extract key indicators to facilitate ecologically, economically, and socially sustainable wildlife conservation tourism for the preservation and recovery of marine endangered species