Parental satisfaction with quality of neonatal care in different level hospitals: evidence from Vietnam

Most health systems provide the most specialized, and presumably also the highest quality of care at a central level. This study assessed parental satisfaction and its determinants in the context of neonatal care in a provincial as well as a national hospital of Vietnam.; In this cross-sectional quantitative study, parents of 340 preterm infants admitted to neonatal care units of a national and a provincial hospital in 2018 were interviewed using structured questionnaires. Unadjusted and adjusted linear regression models were used to assess the relationship between parental satisfaction and hospital rank.; The mean parental satisfaction score was 3.74 at the provincial, and 3.56 at the national hospital. These satisfaction differences persisted when parent and child characteristics were adjusted for in multivariate analysis. Longer length of stay and worsening infant health status were associated with parents reporting lower levels of satisfaction with the quality of care being provided at the healthcare facility.; This study suggests that parents of preterm infants admitted in a provincial hospital were more satisfied with the quality of care received than those in a specialized national hospital. Length of stay and infant health status were the two most important determinants of level of parental satisfaction

Chronic scrotal heat stress causes testicular interstitial inflammation and fibrosis: An experimental study in mice

Background: Chronic heat stress is a risk factor that adversely affects the reproduction system. Inflammation and fibrosis are 2 important response processes to damaged tissues. Objective: This study investigates the association of chronic scrotal heat stress with testicular interstitial inflammation and fibrosis in mice. Materials and Methods: For all experiments, 8-10 wk old male Swiss mice (Mus musculus) (20-23 gr) were divided into 3 groups (n = 10/each). The heat-stress groups were submerged in a water bath at 37°C and 40°C, while the control group was treated at 25°C. The testicular tissues underwent hematoxylin and eosin staining, picro sirius red staining, and immunohistochemistry for intercellular adhesion molecule-1, fibroblast-specific protein 1, F4/80, collagen I, and Ki-67 staining to determine the testicular interstitial inflammation and fibrosis. Results: Chronic scrotal heat stress impairs spermatogenesis and reverses testicular histological structure. In this study, heat stress significantly induced increased interstitial cell proliferation and upregulation of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 expression in the interstitial testicular tissue. In the interstitial testicular tissue, the number of F4/80-positive macrophages and the number of fibroblast-specific protein 1- positive fibroblasts were significantly increased in the heat-exposed groups compared to those in the control group. The heat exposed groups had substantially increased extracellular matrix collagen accumulation in their testicular interstitial tissues. Conclusion: Heat stress adversely affects the testicular structure and spermatogenesis, causes inflammation, and leads to testicular interstitial fibrosis. Key words: Heat stress, Testicular, Inflammation, Fibrosis

Development of blood transfusion external quality assessment program at national scale

Introduction: External quality assessment is a crucial component in ensuring the quality of blood transfusion testing laboratories. Objectives: To develop a procedure for generating external quality assessment items for blood transfusion testing to evaluate participants' performance. Methods: Experimental research was conducted at Quality Control Center for Medical laboratory- University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Three items, including red blood cell, serum, and atypical antibody serum samples, were assessed for homogeneity and stability; 5 assessment areas, including ABO grouping, Rh grouping, compatible cross matches, Coombs test, and screening of atypical antibodies, were utilized to evaluate the performance of 38 participants in the 2020-2021 period. Results: Red blood cell and serum samples maintained quality for a specific period at controlled temperatures, while serum samples with atypical antibodies showed stability at different temperatures. The participants demonstrated high satisfactory performance in ABO grouping, Rh grouping, Coombs test, and screening for atypical antibodies. However, the most unsatisfactory performance was reported in crossmatching, with 15% of participants unsatisfactory results. Conclusion: The procedure of production of proficiency testing items has been successfully developed, and its application at the national level is suggested to improve the quality of blood transfusion laboratories

The burden of tuberculosis in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam: a spatial analysis of drug-susceptible and multi-drug resistant cases between 2020 and 2023

We characterised the spatial distribution of drug-susceptible (DS) and multi-drug resistant (MDR) tuberculosis (TB) cases in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), a major South-East Asian metropolis, and explored demographic and socioeconomic factors associated with local TB burden. Hot spots of DS- and MDR-TB incidence were observed in the central parts of HCMC, with substantial heterogeneity observed across wards. Positive spatial autocorrelation was observed for both DS- and MDR-TB. Ward-level TB incidence was associated with HIV prevalence (incidence rate ratio [IRR] 1.77, 95% CI 1.54-2.03) and the male proportion of the population (IRR 1.05, 95% CI 1.02-1.08). No ward-level demographic and socioeconomic indicators were associated with MDR-TB case count relative to total TB case count. Our findings may inform spatially-targeted TB control strategies and provide insights for generating hypotheses about the nature of the relationship between DS- and MDR-TB in HCMC, Vietnam and the wider South-East Asia region

Natural Radioactivity in Commonly Building Materials Used in Vietnam - 11255

ABSTRACT Naturally occurring radionuclides in building materials contribute to external and internal exposure and that is necessary to be investigated. In the research, 213 samples of 11 different kinds of commonly used structural and covering building materials were collected from housing and other building construction sites and from suppliers in Vietnam to measure the natural radioactivity of Ra-226, Th-232 and K-40. The measurements were carried out using low background gamma-ray spectrometry with HPGe detector. The specific activities of the different building materials varied from 0.18 -395.28, 0.10 -266.52 and 0.76 -2006.78 Bq/kg with the average values of 52.09, 55.70 and 593.5 Bq/kg for Ra-226, Th-232 and K-40, respectively. The obtained data were compared with the corresponding reported data of other countries. The activity concentration index and the annual effective dose were evaluated to assess the potential radiological hazard associated with these building materials. The results showed that the enhanced concentration values were sometimes felling into granite tiles, especially imported granite tiles. These obtained data aimed to enlarge the database on natural radioactivity in commonly building materials used in Vietnam and to support technical aspects in hazard exposure reduction

Anal human papillomavirus prevalence and risk factors among men who have sex with men in Vietnam.

OBJECTIVES: Men who have sex with men (MSM) are at risk of human papillomavirus (HPV)-related cancers, while published data are scarce. This study determined HPV prevalence and risk factors in MSM in Vietnam to inform HPV prevention strategies in this key population. METHODS: A cross-sectional study of 799 MSM aged 16-50 years was conducted in Vietnam in 2017-2018. Information was collected on risk behaviours, and knowledge of HPV and anal cancer; rectal swabs were taken to detect anal HPV infection. An in-house polymerase chain reaction and Genoflow HPV array test kit were used for HPV detection and genotyping. RESULTS: The median age of the study participants was 25 years (range 18-52). Overall prevalence of any HPV and HPV16/18 infection was 32.3% and 11.0%, respectively. A higher prevalence of high-risk HPV infection to all 14 types tested was found in Ho Chi Minh City (30.9%) than in Hanoi (18.4%). High-risk HPV infection was associated with inconsistent condom use and history of engaging in sex under the influence of drugs (adjusted odds ratio (aOR), 2.27; 95% CI, 1.48-10.67), as well as having multiple sexual partners (aOR, 1.01; 95% CI, 1.00-1.02). CONCLUSIONS: High-risk anal HPV infections in Vietnamese MSM were significantly associated with risky sexual behaviours. A targeted HPV vaccination strategy would have substantial benefit for MSM in Vietnam

Rifampicin resistant 'Mycobacterium tuberculosis' in Vietnam, 2020–2022

Objective: We conducted a descriptive analysis of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in Vietnam’s two largest cities, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city. Methods: All patients with rifampicin resistant tuberculosis were recruited from Hanoi and surrounding provinces between 2020 and 2022. Additional patients were recruited from Ho Chi Minh city over the same time period. Demographic data were recorded from all patients, and samples collected, cultured, whole genome sequenced and analysed for drug resistance mutations. Genomic susceptibility predictions were made on the basis of the World Health Organization’s catalogue of mutations in Mycobacterium tuberculosis associated with drug resistance, version 2. Comparisons were made against phenotypic drug susceptibility test results where these were available. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess risk factors for previous episodes of tuberculosis. Results: 233/265 sequenced isolates were of sufficient quality for analysis, 146 (63 %) from Ho Chi Minh City and 87 (37 %) from Hanoi. 198 (85 %) were lineage 2, 20 (9 %) were lineage 4, and 15 (6 %) were lineage 1. 17/211 (8 %) for whom HIV status was known were infected, and 109/214 (51 %) patients had had a previous episode of tuberculosis. The main risk factor for a previous episode was HIV infection (odds ratio 5.1 (95 % confidence interval 1.3–20.0); p = 0.021). Sensitivity for predicting first-line drug resistance from whole genome sequencing data was over 90 %, with the exception of pyrazinamide (85 %). For moxifloxacin and amikacin it was 50 % or less. Among rifampicin-resistant isolates, prevalence of resistance to each non-first-line drug was < 20 %. Conclusions: Drug resistance among most MDR-TB strains in Vietnam’s two largest cities is confined largely to first-line drugs. Living with HIV is the main risk factor among patients with MDR-TB for having had a previous episode of tuberculosis