Long Story Short

Zhelnov P. Long story short. Zheln. 2020 Oct 21;43(1):s1e1. URI: https://zheln.com/summary/2020/10/21/1/.

What Does Zheln Give You?

There are 123 recent systematic review records on the Zheln website now, most published this fall, added daily, each:

• Counting as a true positive by Shojania & Bero 2001 criteria for systematic reviews (means they, indeed, are systematic).
• Annotated with AMA specialty tags taken from the AMA Physician Masterfile specialty list.

As a result, you can enjoy a current and Open Access directory of the most recent systematic reviews in any AMA specialty on their respective specialty pages.

In the near future, as soon as I register an academic protocol for this project, thorough critical appraisals of a few select reviews will also become publicly available. As a rule, I select a review for full appraisal when the topic covered is likely to have a very large practice impact with regard either to both global health care workers and the public or to the minorities.

Also, crowdfunding an appraisal is possible—and most welcome, too, actually, as Zheln is running out of funds and will shut down by the end of 2020 unless crowdfunded.

Where Are These Records From?

These records came from my Replicated Systematic Subset PubMed query that differs from the regular PubMed Systematic Reviews Filter query in that it:

• Incorporates the more sensitive, legacy February 2017 version of the query.
• Allows for more precise replication of the record subset.

In one and a half months from Sep 1 to Oct 19, 2020, the query produced the appalling 23,827 records. 😱

Of these thousands of records, I appraised 158 records (0.6%) to date. But for the last four days since the latest summary post, I’ve been appraising sixteen times more or 10% daily and will keep up the pace.

Of the records appraised, in turn, 35 records (22%) did not meet the Shojania & Bero 2001 criteria and were excluded from further processing. However, they are still accessible on the Zheln website via the search box.

What Is Zheln, Honestly?

I named the project after the zhelna, the black woodpecker, who do the same thing I do: Hit to the core. This is also the root word of my last name.

Appraisals in Progress

1. New! What is known regarding policy to address pediatric suicidality?
2. How important is postural control in Down syndrome?
3. What works for at-risk mental states?
4. What is the effect of ticagrelor monotherapy after PCI?
5. How good is social accountability for reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health?
6. What is in the American Psychiatric Association guideline on schizophrenia?
7. Crowdfunded How effective are tooth decay prevention measures in children six years old or younger?
8. How good is C-reactive protein measurement with regard to health outcomes?
9. What is the association between sugar-free gum and dental caries?
10. How big is the impact of perinatal care systems on infant mortality?
11. How effective is empathy training in health care education?
12. What are the current therapeutic applications of human mesenchymal stem cells?
13. How useful is patient blood management to improve outcomes of major surgery?
14. What is the effectiveness of eHealth interventions for improving public health?
15. What is the risk of congenital malformations associated with beta-blocker use in early pregnancy?
16. How effective behavioral weight-loss interventions in diabetes are?

Full Text Wanted!

I had selected these systematic reviews for full appraisal, but their full texts were unavailable to me. Please contact me if you wish to help procuring them.

1. New! What are the outcome predictors of Parent Management Training for child conduct problems?
2. New! What is the role of a Registered Dietitian in weight management?
3. How effective are anti-amyloid-β drugs for Alzheimer’s disease?
4. How is homelessness experienced by transgender people?
5. How useful is physical exercise for people living with breast cancer?

See You Around, Peer

Get in Touch Now or Get Back on Sat, Oct 24

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Help Crowdfund Zheln

Zheln Is Supported by Crowdfunding Only

Running Zheln takes most of my work capacity. I’ve managed to stay off other jobs for now but will be forced to find another job unless crowdfunded by the end of this year.

In other words, you can’t be sure Zheln isn’t suspended in 2021 if you avoid funding it. But if you donate, I pledge to keep running Zheln in recognition of your support.

If you want Zheln to live on, please use one of these options:

 Subscribe on Patreon for $1/mo to $600/mo

 Send $1 via PayPal

Email Me About Anything

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 Bonus for Star Wars Fans!

Subscribing on Patreon enables you to change the icon of a given Zheln record to a Star Wars symbol of your choice! Learn more on Patreon.

All Other Zheln Features Are Free for Everyone

 Search for Appraisals,  Browse by AMA Specialty, or  Read Biweekly Appraisal Summaries