Empty systematic reviews: Identifying gaps in knowledge or a waste of time and effort?

Gray, Richard

doi:10.1111/nae2.23

Cited by 25 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Although the search resulted in no eligible studies identified in Garuda and Sinta databases, it is important to identify gaps in knowledge by reporting this result. (18) Afterward, the studies were exported to Mendeley Reference Manager software to remove 641 articles, and 970 remained. After removing 660 book chapters, conference abstracts, letters, commentary, encyclopedia, and other non-peer-reviewed articles, 310 articles remained for screening.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Grape Seed Extract’s Neuroprotective Effect and Parkinson’s Disease: A Systematic Review

Fandy

2022

MNJ

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Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the most common neurological disease globally, only second to Alzheimer’s disease. One of the emerging treatments for PD is nutraceuticals. Grape seed extract (GSE) has a high concentration of polyphenolic compounds possessing antioxidant and neuroprotective capacity that may be valuable for neurodegenerative diseases. So far, there is no review summarizing the neuroprotective effect of GSE on PD, even though it is crucial to provide an insight into GSE as a potential natural treatment for PD. This systematic review aims to summarize the neuroprotective effect of grape seed extract (GSE) in Parkinson’s Disease in vivo and in vitro and their mechanism. The author performed a literature search using PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus, Sinta, and Garuda databases with keywords comprising “Neuroprotective”, “Grape Seed,” and “Parkinson’s disease.” Out of 1611 studies retrieved, 20 articles fit the inclusion criteria and became the basis for this review. The author analyzed and extracted the records regarding the neuroprotective effect and potential anti-PD properties from the studies. The analysis summarized that GSE could significantly improve the biological hallmarks of PD with numerous mechanisms, including antioxidant, anti-inflammation, protection of dopaminergic neurons, anti-amyloid effect, anti-apoptotic, neurogenesis, and synaptogenesis. Although the precise mechanism underlying PD is still elusive, treatment should target not only a single cause of PD but instead several pathways that could lead to the disease. In conclusion, GSE should be considered a potential nutraceutical in clinical trials to prevent and alleviate Parkinson’s disease by multiple mechanisms.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Grape Seed Extract’s Neuroprotective Effect and Parkinson’s Disease: A Systematic Review

Fandy

2022

MNJ

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“…The search on vaginal dabbing yielded zero articles indicating an empty review on vaginal dabbing, that is, no eligible studies retrieved or located by the authors (see also Lang and colleagues 34–36 ). While this is not new, as 10% of reviews could be empty 35 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Sometimes, such empty reviews should be expected and they are not useless. The most important essence of an empty review is that it identifies gaps in knowledge 36 . Evidence is the foundation of scientific practice and healthcare 37 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Research on vaginal dabbing: A systematic scoping review

Amzat

Kanmodi

Egbedina

2023

Repro Female Child Health

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Introduction: Vabbing, also known as vaginal dabbing, is a known behaviour gaining ground in modern society. Vabbing is the act of dabbing vaginal secretions as body perfume droplets to sexually attract others. This study aims to conduct a scoping review (ScR) of empirical studies on vaginal dabbing. Methodology: This review, informed by the Joanna Brigg's Institute's guidelines for ScRs, was reported based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Metanalysis for ScRs. Eight databases-PubMed, SCOPUS, AMED-Allied and Complementary Medicine, CINAHL Complete, CINAHL Ultimate, APA PsycArticles, APA PsycInfo and Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection-were searched for relevant literature on vaginal dabbing. The retrieved literature were extracted, deduplicated and screened with the aid of Endnote and Rayyan software, respectively, to identify eligible studies for data collation, charting, and summarisation. Results: This is an empty review with no included eligible article; thus, indicating a limited research and knowledge gap concerning the practice of vabbing. While the issue of odour in sexual communication has been significantly researched, the specific use of vaginal fluids as perfume or bodywear has not attracted scientific investigations. Therefore, a limited research base cannot provide evidence-based support for the practice, and related sexual attraction choices. Conclusion: Due to social media, vabbing is gaining more popularity. Since there is no definite evidence to support the efficacy of the practice, there is a need for scientific investigation on whether humans are sexually sensitive to vaginal fluids worn as perfume.

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“…Importantly, as stressed by Gray (2021), identifying only two studies in this review is nonetheless valuable for current L2 research because we can now be confident that there is little relevant research available. This means we can identify that researching whether MWUs in curricula and teaching have beneficial effects on young learners' L2 development is a muchneeded area of future research.…”

Section: Available Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of multi-word units in early foreign language learning and teaching contexts. A systematic review.

Schulz¹,

Hamilton²,

Wonnacott³

et al. 2022

Preprint

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This systematic review reports on research investigating the effectiveness of multi-word unit (MWU) input in instructed foreign language (FL) settings on young learners’ L2 attainment. Recent findings suggest that L2 learners can generalise from MWU input, abstract patterns and employ such schemata productively via slot-filling, indicating that MWUs are key catalysts of learners’ L2 development. At the same time, primary school L2 instruction is on the rise worldwide. Congruously, the importance of MWUs in L2 development is acknowledged in primary school curricula, teacher education and teaching materials: MWUs are considered crucial in the L2 classroom. Therefore, the incentive of this review is to systematically report the state of the art of research regarding the impact of MWU instruction in early L2 teaching contexts. The review covers English, German and French research into typically developing monolingual children aged 5 to 12 learning FLs in instructed teaching settings. Only two of the total results (n=2,233) met the inclusion criteria. Following quality assessment using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool and based on a narrative synthesis of available results, we cannot report trustworthy evidence of the effectiveness of teaching MWUs to young L2 learners. We conclude that the extant research lacks robust evidence that MWU input already established in teaching contexts has a measurable effect on specific aspects of students’ L2 attainment, such as productive skills. While we promote MWU’s potential facilitating role in L2 development, we call for more classroom-based intervention research on MWUs in primary school contexts to enable much needed evidence-based recommendations for L2 teaching to support L2 learning outcomes in primary schools.

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Empty systematic reviews: Identifying gaps in knowledge or a waste of time and effort?

Cited by 25 publications

References 15 publications

Grape Seed Extract’s Neuroprotective Effect and Parkinson’s Disease: A Systematic Review

Grape Seed Extract’s Neuroprotective Effect and Parkinson’s Disease: A Systematic Review

Research on vaginal dabbing: A systematic scoping review

The impact of multi-word units in early foreign language learning and teaching contexts. A systematic review.

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