A comparison study of the efficacy of tacker mesh fixation, glue mesh fixation and no mesh fixation in transabdominal preperitoneal inguinal hernia repair

The minimally invasive laparoscopic techniques include transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP) and total extraperitoneal hernioplasty (TEP). Our study is to compare outcomes including hernia recurrences rate and chronic inguinal pain, following mesh fixation using histoacryl glue versus tacker versus no mesh fixation in TAPP. The intensity of postoperative pain was assessed with the Carolinas Comfort scale (CCS). In the study, Proceed Surgical mesh was exclusively used

Impact of Soil Sealing on Soil Carbon Sequestration, Water Storage Potentials and Biomass Productivity in Functional Urban Areas of the European Union and the United Kingdom

The negative impacts of soil sealing are numerous, from withdrawing fertile soil from biomass production to modifying the microclimate and decreasing biodiversity. Many of the processes are interrelated and propagate further undesirable consequences from local to global levels. Three issues are especially important from the viewpoint of multiscale ecological cycles and consequent environmental impacts. One is soil organic carbon (SOC), the other is soil water management and the third is biomass productivity. In this study, we assessed the lost carbon sequestration potential due to soil sealing in functional Urban Areas (FUAs) of Europe, the potential effect of soil sealing on the topsoil to hold water to its full capacity and the loss of biomass productivity potential. Findings revealed that one-fifth of the area of soil that became sealed between 2012 and 2018 was of high productivity potential, and almost two-thirds was of medium productivity potential. New soil sealing caused a loss of carbon sequestration potential estimated at 4 million tons of carbon of the FUAs and also caused an estimated potential loss of water-holding capacity of 668 million m3

A comparison study of the efficacy of tacker mesh fixation, glue mesh fixation and no mesh fixation in transabdominal preperitoneal inguinal hernia repair

The minimally invasive laparoscopic techniques include transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP) and total extraperitoneal hernioplasty (TEP). Our study is to compare outcomes including hernia recurrences rate and chronic inguinal pain, following mesh fixation using histoacryl glue versus tacker versus no mesh fixation in TAPP. The intensity of postoperative pain was assessed with the Carolinas Comfort scale (CCS). In the study, Proceed Surgical mesh was exclusively used

Earth Observation in Support of the City Biodiversity Index

Today, we are living in an urban world. For the first time in history, there are now more people living in cities than in rural areas. In Europe their share has reached almost three quarters. Urban areas supposedly will absorb almost all the population growth expected over the next decades. This will pose a range of challenges for cities and their surroundings, not only on resource availability and the quality of urban environments, but also on biodiversity in cities. Capturing the status and trends of biodiversity and ecosystem services in urban landscapes represents an important part of understanding whether a metropolitan area is developing along a sustainable trajectory or not. Actions to conserve biodiversity should start with stock-taking and identifying baselines, followed by regular monitoring of conservation initiatives. The City Biodiversity Index (CBI), also known as the Singapore Index on Cities‘ Biodiversity (or Singapore Index) because of Singapore‘s leadership in its development, has been adopted during COP-9 of the CBD in 2008. It is conceived as a self-assessment tool to evaluate the state of biodiversity in cities and to provide insights for improving conservation efforts. This includes an initial baseline measurement, the identification of policy priorities based on their measurements and then a monitoring at periodic intervals. Today, the CBI includes 23 indicators from three categories such as the proportion of natural areas in the city or the budget allocated to conservation projects. The CBI is designed to be applied by many cities in the world to monitor their progress in conservation efforts and their success in halting the rate of biodiversity loss. The project provides support to 4 of the 23 indicators. The results illustrated below are based on satellite earth observation data combined with local in-situ information. The output of the data analysis (i.e. percentage or an area value) can be directly used to determine the relevant CBI score

The timing of leaf flush in European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) saplings

Spring phenology is considered one of the most important determinants of growth and survival in young stands. It is relatively easy to monitor and is expected to respond to climate changes that will affect the favourable period for growth in temperate regions. The response of trees to the environmental cues that govern spring phenology is largely under genetic control and inter-populational differences exist within species. This suggests that the trait undergoes site-specific selection. Data obtained through monitoring of bud burst at multiple beech provenance-trials were compared with specific site and weather data to reveal geographical clines in beech phenology. We fitted the Weibull function to harmonise phenology data collected using various flushing scales and at different intensities of monitoring. By comparing data from 20 annual census of phenology performed across 13 sites throughout Europe, we showed that accumulated temperature sum > 5°C modelled the timing and duration of flushing more consistently than other temperature sum models > 0°C or > 8°C, or simply Julian Day. Inconsistency in the number of degree hours required for flushing among sites, reinforced the need for testing of more complex mechanistic models that include photoperiod, chilling period, and summer drought in addition to temperature sum. South-North, East-West, and low-high elevational clines were confirmed from the analysis. These findings; reinforce the need for caution in planting provenances from the south-east of Europe, suited to warmer-drier summers, in more north-westerly sites; and highlight the location of some potentially valuable late-flushing populations that also tolerate warm dry temperatures.Peer reviewe

Physical activity, screen time and the COVID-19 school closures in Europe – an observational study in 10 countries

To date, few data on how the COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions affected children’s physical activity in Europe have been published. This study examined the prevalence and correlates of physical activity and screen time from a large sample of European children during the COVID-19 pandemic to inform strategies and provide adequate mitigation measures. An online survey was conducted using convenience sampling from 15 May to 22 June, 2020. Parents were eligible if they resided in one of the survey countries and their children aged 6–18 years. 8395 children were included (median age [IQR], 13 [10–15] years; 47% boys; 57.6% urban residents; 15.5% in self-isolation). Approximately two-thirds followed structured routines (66.4% [95%CI, 65.4–67.4]), and more than half were active during online P.E. (56.6% [95%CI, 55.5–57.6]). 19.0% (95%CI, 18.2–19.9) met the WHO Global physical activity recommendation. Total screen time in excess of 2 h/day was highly prevalent (weekdays: 69.5% [95%CI, 68.5–70.5]; weekend: 63.8% [95%CI, 62.7–64.8]). Playing outdoors more than 2 h/day, following a daily routine and being active in online P.E. increased the odds of healthy levels of physical activity and screen time, particularly in mildly affected countries. In severely affected countries, online P.E. contributed most to meet screen time recommendation, whereas outdoor play was most important for adequate physical activity. Promoting safe and responsible outdoor activities, safeguarding P.E. lessons during distance learning and setting pre-planned, consistent daily routines are important in helping children maintain healthy active lifestyle in pandemic situation. These factors should be prioritised by policymakers, schools and parents. Highlights • To our knowledge, our data provide the first multi-national estimates on physical activity and total screen time in European children roughly two months after COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic. • Only 1 in 5 children met the WHO Global physical activity recommendations. • Under pandemic conditions, parents should set pre-planned, consistent daily routines and integrate at least 2-hours outdoor activities into the daily schedule, preferable on each day. Schools should make P.E. lessons a priority. Decision makers should mandate online P.E. be delivered by schools during distance learning. Closing outdoor facilities for PA should be considered only as the last resort during lockdowns

: Final report

63 p.Interest in cities is growing again in Europe. Theories of "growth poles" forgotten since the 1960s re-emerge, although in different form, without the idea of building new cities in the desert. Metropolitanisation, although sometimes difficult to grasp empirically, is recognized as a post-fordist phenomena, with a gain of the importance of large cities, linked to the increasing need for size-based agglomeration effect in the global, networked knowledge economy. And European policy makers are once again discussing the need of and the form for new urban policies at European (as witnessed by the above quote), but also at national scale. From the outset, this project has had two, complementary, but not always easily reconcilable orientations: provide a broad overview of the current and future issues relevant to urban development in all of Europe, advance scientifically beyond the established and well-known data and analyses, provide innovative research. As this report was elaborated in parallel to the new State of European Cities report to be published by DG Regio, we also aimed at complementarity with that report, not wanting to repeat the same analyses based on the same data. In this project, we, therefore, worked in three parallel strands. First, all teams went through the current literature to extract the knowledge about trends, perspectives and, most importantly, driving forces for urban development in their thematic fields. Second, each of the teams focused on one or two innovative empirical research questions, generally tapping new data sources. Finally, our scenario team has taken the work of the other teams, and substantially augmented it through additional literature review, aiming at covering an even larger horizon and to provide a complete knowledge base on urban development, necessary for integrated prospective thinking. On this basis the scenarios were developed. The structure of the report reflects these three strands, adding a fourth, new strand, which consists in an assessment of the current national policy visions on urban issues across Europe. Details of all the literature reviews and analyses are presented in the scientific report

: Final report

63 p.Interest in cities is growing again in Europe. Theories of "growth poles" forgotten since the 1960s re-emerge, although in different form, without the idea of building new cities in the desert. Metropolitanisation, although sometimes difficult to grasp empirically, is recognized as a post-fordist phenomena, with a gain of the importance of large cities, linked to the increasing need for size-based agglomeration effect in the global, networked knowledge economy. And European policy makers are once again discussing the need of and the form for new urban policies at European (as witnessed by the above quote), but also at national scale. From the outset, this project has had two, complementary, but not always easily reconcilable orientations: provide a broad overview of the current and future issues relevant to urban development in all of Europe, advance scientifically beyond the established and well-known data and analyses, provide innovative research. As this report was elaborated in parallel to the new State of European Cities report to be published by DG Regio, we also aimed at complementarity with that report, not wanting to repeat the same analyses based on the same data. In this project, we, therefore, worked in three parallel strands. First, all teams went through the current literature to extract the knowledge about trends, perspectives and, most importantly, driving forces for urban development in their thematic fields. Second, each of the teams focused on one or two innovative empirical research questions, generally tapping new data sources. Finally, our scenario team has taken the work of the other teams, and substantially augmented it through additional literature review, aiming at covering an even larger horizon and to provide a complete knowledge base on urban development, necessary for integrated prospective thinking. On this basis the scenarios were developed. The structure of the report reflects these three strands, adding a fourth, new strand, which consists in an assessment of the current national policy visions on urban issues across Europe. Details of all the literature reviews and analyses are presented in the scientific report