Factors affecting the early production of processing tomatoes : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Applied Science in Plant Science at Massey University

A field experiment was conducted on the Karapoti brown sandy loam soil during the 1995-96 season on the Horticultural Field Plots at the Plant Growth Unit, Massey University. The objective of the research was to study the effect of black plastic mulch with fertigation and fabric row covers on crop growth, yield, quality and maturity of processing tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. cv. Cleo). The rowcover (RC) treatment advanced by 2 days both the date of first flowering and 50% flower opening compared with no RC. There were no RC effects on growth during the first 8 weeks in the field. RC reduced the yield and number of factory grade fruit at optimum harvest. Thus the treatment was detrimental. These results suggested that the use of floating covers during early summer in New Zealand will cause fruit setting to be reduced by high temperatures (>30°C). Bad weather delayed planting and resulted in relatively short use of the RC. If planting had taken place three weeks earlier, as planned, then RC may have improved earliness and not had a detrimental effect on yield. These results confirmed that the timing of rowcover application is critical for its successful use. The nutrient concentrations in leaves of mulched plants maintained higher levels of N P K during establishment. During the period of the fruit swelling (28-91 days after transplanting) the nutrient levels in the leaves fell markedly. The leaf analysis data in this experiment suggests that N and P had an important role in improving early growth and fruit set and as a result increased fruit number and yield. The results of this study showed that black plastic mulch plus fertigation provided for improvements in the early growth (relative growth rate) and development (number of flower clusters) and yield of total, red and factory grade fruit for the processing tomato cv Cleo. The optimum harvest time occurred 114 days after transplanting. Fertigation made a major contribution to the increase in yield. With cultivar Cleo the number and yield of factory grade and red fruit followed a normal distribution curve. This showed that advancing or delaying harvest by one week significantly reduced yield and it is suggested that the timing of harvest of processing tomatoes is more crucial than is commonly believed. A technique to predict the optimum harvest date for processing tomatoes should be developed

Prospective observational cohort study on grading the severity of postoperative complications in global surgery research

Background The Clavien–Dindo classification is perhaps the most widely used approach for reporting postoperative complications in clinical trials. This system classifies complication severity by the treatment provided. However, it is unclear whether the Clavien–Dindo system can be used internationally in studies across differing healthcare systems in high- (HICs) and low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Methods This was a secondary analysis of the International Surgical Outcomes Study (ISOS), a prospective observational cohort study of elective surgery in adults. Data collection occurred over a 7-day period. Severity of complications was graded using Clavien–Dindo and the simpler ISOS grading (mild, moderate or severe, based on guided investigator judgement). Severity grading was compared using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Data are presented as frequencies and ICC values (with 95 per cent c.i.). The analysis was stratified by income status of the country, comparing HICs with LMICs. Results A total of 44 814 patients were recruited from 474 hospitals in 27 countries (19 HICs and 8 LMICs). Some 7508 patients (16·8 per cent) experienced at least one postoperative complication, equivalent to 11 664 complications in total. Using the ISOS classification, 5504 of 11 664 complications (47·2 per cent) were graded as mild, 4244 (36·4 per cent) as moderate and 1916 (16·4 per cent) as severe. Using Clavien–Dindo, 6781 of 11 664 complications (58·1 per cent) were graded as I or II, 1740 (14·9 per cent) as III, 2408 (20·6 per cent) as IV and 735 (6·3 per cent) as V. Agreement between classification systems was poor overall (ICC 0·41, 95 per cent c.i. 0·20 to 0·55), and in LMICs (ICC 0·23, 0·05 to 0·38) and HICs (ICC 0·46, 0·25 to 0·59). Conclusion Caution is recommended when using a treatment approach to grade complications in global surgery studies, as this may introduce bias unintentionally

Critical care admission following elective surgery was not associated with survival benefit: prospective analysis of data from 27 countries

This was an investigator initiated study funded by Nestle Health Sciences through an unrestricted research grant, and by a National Institute for Health Research (UK) Professorship held by RP. The study was sponsored by Queen Mary University of London

The surgical safety checklist and patient outcomes after surgery: a prospective observational cohort study, systematic review and meta-analysis

© 2017 British Journal of Anaesthesia Background: The surgical safety checklist is widely used to improve the quality of perioperative care. However, clinicians continue to debate the clinical effectiveness of this tool. Methods: Prospective analysis of data from the International Surgical Outcomes Study (ISOS), an international observational study of elective in-patient surgery, accompanied by a systematic review and meta-analysis of published literature. The exposure was surgical safety checklist use. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality and the secondary outcome was postoperative complications. In the ISOS cohort, a multivariable multi-level generalized linear model was used to test associations. To further contextualise these findings, we included the results from the ISOS cohort in a meta-analysis. Results are reported as odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals. Results: We included 44 814 patients from 497 hospitals in 27 countries in the ISOS analysis. There were 40 245 (89.8%) patients exposed to the checklist, whilst 7508 (16.8%) sustained ≥1 postoperative complications and 207 (0.5%) died before hospital discharge. Checklist exposure was associated with reduced mortality [odds ratio (OR) 0.49 (0.32–0.77); P\u3c0.01], but no difference in complication rates [OR 1.02 (0.88–1.19); P=0.75]. In a systematic review, we screened 3732 records and identified 11 eligible studies of 453 292 patients including the ISOS cohort. Checklist exposure was associated with both reduced postoperative mortality [OR 0.75 (0.62–0.92); P\u3c0.01; I2=87%] and reduced complication rates [OR 0.73 (0.61–0.88); P\u3c0.01; I2=89%). Conclusions: Patients exposed to a surgical safety checklist experience better postoperative outcomes, but this could simply reflect wider quality of care in hospitals where checklist use is routine