Interventions to prevent dog fouling: a systematic review of the evidence.

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: To undertake a systematic review of articles on the prevention of dog fouling. STUDY DESIGN: Systematic review. METHODS: Literature searches were conducted using six major electronic databases. Published and unpublished material was considered, with no restrictions on date or language. A total of 47 other databases and websites were interrogated. Articles were hand searched for references that had not been identified in the electronic search. Only controlled trials or observational studies assessing the impact of any intervention on the prevention of dog fouling were liable for inclusion in the systematic review. RESULTS: The search identified a total of 68 articles, none of which fulfilled the inclusion criteria. CONCLUSIONS: The review did not find any good-quality studies which have looked at interventions to prevent dog fouling. According to the Cochrane Collaboration, reviews that are unable to find any relevant studies are particularly useful because they highlight important gaps in our knowledge. It is recommended that research is commissioned to answer the important question of what interventions actually work to prevent dog fouling. Methods for performing this research are suggested.