SynthesisPloS one2024
Do we still need a canary in the coal mine for laboratory animal facilities? A systematic review of environmental health monitoring versus soiled bedding sentinels.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 11 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed.
- Enhancing Rodent Welfare, Cost Savings, and Efficiency: Implementation and Review of Data-Driven Improvements.Journal of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science : JAALAS · 2026Review
- Article
- Twenty years of health monitoring in a conventional neuroscience animal facility: challenges, strategies, and 3Rs-oriented approaches to animal welfare, personnel health, and research integrity.Frontiers in physiology · 2026Article
- Evaluation of Direct Colony Sampling Compared with Sentinel-Free Soiled Bedding Testing for Murine Quarantine Programs.Journal of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science : JAALAS · 2025Article
- Institutional Cost Savings and Improved Pathogen Detection by Replacing Sentinel Mice with Environmental Soiled Bedding Health Monitoring Methods.Journal of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science : JAALAS · 2025Article
- Detection and Remediation of Pneumocystis murina Infections by Environmental Health Monitoring.Journal of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science : JAALAS · 2025Article
- Rodent Pathogen Detection via Testing of Soiled Nesting Material.Journal of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science : JAALAS · 2025Article
- Non-Invasive Analyses of Altered Schaedler Flora in C57Bl/6J and Balb/c Mice to Monitor Hygiene Status of a Housing Facility.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2025Article
- Evaluation of Sentinel-Free Soiled Bedding as a Replacement for Direct Sampling in PCR Detection of Rodent Pathogens during Quarantine.Journal of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science : JAALAS · 2025Article
- Guidance on Establishing Health Monitoring Panels for Laboratory Mice to Reflect Contemporary Pathogen Prevalence.Journal of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science : JAALAS · 2025Review
- A survey on the implementation of environmental health monitoring in mouse facilities in German-speaking countries.PloS one · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionDespite increasing evidence that Environmental Health Monitoring (EHM) is an effective method to perform rodent colony health surveillance, promotes the 3Rs as a Replacement, is comparable or reduces cost, and demonstrates labor benefits, many research institutions continue to use live Soiled Bedding Sentinels (SBS). Some veterinarians and others responsible for rodent colony health monitoring remain cautious of the evidence supporting this new technology. Therefore, our objective was to perform a formal systematic review to identify, summarize, and evaluate the research on the efficacy of EHM as compared to SBS. This information is essential to establishing recommendations for rodent health monitoring programs.
methodsWe systematically searched and evaluated all articles comparing EHM to SBS identified from PubMed, Web of Science, and CAB abstracts initially on November 12, 2021 with an update on Oct 15, 2023. Our inclusion criteria included publication in a peer-reviewed journal and collection of empirical data on rodent health monitoring alternatives to soiled bedding sentinels. Outcome data was extracted and analyzed via logistic regression and secondary descriptive statistics. Due to the nature of the included studies, no risk of bias assessment was performed. No specific funding was received for this review.
resultsForty-two peer-reviewed articles passed inclusion criteria for analysis. The design of studies varied substantially but included publications investigating exhaust dust testing (n = 27), sentinel-free soiled bedding (n = 8), and direct colony sampling (n = 24). Based on both logistical regression and descriptive criteria, all types of EHM appear to be superior to soiled bedding sentinels at detecting pathogens, regardless of their taxonomic classification.
conclusionBased on these findings, we conclude there is a strong evidence base supporting the replacement of SBS with EHM. Looking forward, we encourage continued research on the detection of existing and emerging pathogens with these technologies and development of best practices for routine rodent health monitoring programs.
Indexed as
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.