Reduced Need of Infiltration Anesthesia Accompanied With Other Positive Outcomes in Diode Laser Application for Frenectomy in Children

Introduction: The abnormal maxillary labial frenum is common in children during the primary or mixed dentition stage. A conventional surgery for this abnormality usually requires infiltration anesthesia which leads to fear in children and consequent noncooperation during the surgery. The aim of present study was to evaluate the reduction in the need of infiltration anesthesia, intraoperative bleeding control and postoperative pain and wound healing in children when using the diode laser for abnormal labial frenum in the maxilla.Methods: The present study was carried out among 30 children attending the Hanoi Medical University, Vietnam. A Diode Laser with 810 nm wavelength and power of 0.8 W was used for frenectomy.Results: The proportion of procedures without any need of infiltration anesthesia was 70%, while 93.34% of children demonstrated positive and very positive behavior. Proportion of indolence on the first day after surgery was 83.3%. While 83.3% of children did not take any analgesics, not a single child complained of any pain 3 days after surgery.Conclusion: Our results indicated that the use of diode laser showed several benefits in maxillary labial frenectomy in children. These included reducing the need of infiltration anesthesia, increasing the children’s cooperation as well as decreasing the postoperative pain

HMU fluorinze mouthwash enhances enamel remineralization: An in vitro study

BACKGROUND: Fluoride therapy has long been used extensively to prevent dental caries. Fluoride appears in variety of dental care products such as mouthrinse, dentifrice, gel, etc. HMU fluorinze is the first mouthwash containing fluoride in Vietnam. AIM: This research was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of HMU Fluorinze mouthwash on remineralizing enamel in laboratory conditions. METHODS: 20 third molars teeth were cleaned and covered with nail polish , except for a 3x3 mm square on their buccal surfaces. These teeth went through two steps: demineralization using Coke and remineralization for 20 days: 1) using standard calcifying solution (control group) and 2) using standard calcifying solution + HMU Fluorinze mouthwash 2 times/day (experimental group). The mineralization index of enamel structure after demineralization and remineralization was assessed by DIAGNOdent pen 2190. RESULTS: The mineralization indexes of the control group and experimental group at baseline were 3.65 ± 0.76 and 3.35 ± 0.64, after demineralization were in turn of 21.78 ± 4.48 and 20.25 ± 2.26; and after remineralization were 6.30 ± 1.03 and 3.90 ± 1.24. The different figures  between the two groups after remineralization shows statistical significance (p<0.01). Group B using HMU fluorinze mouthwash after 20 days did not differ from the original results (p = 0.272), in contrast with the control group (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: HMU fluorinze mouthwash has better mineralization effect than standard calcifying solution

Awareness And Risk Behaviors Towards Zoonotic Disease Among Ethnic Minority In Mountainous Area Of Central Vietnam

Background: As a result of the population explosion and rapid urbanization, human activities have been causing negative impacts on the environment. The changing patterns of transmissible diseases among wild animals, livestock and human have been getting more and more complicated in the context of climate change. Ethnic community from mountainous and isolated areas undoubtedly are the most vulnerable, with the high risk of emerging and re-emerging zoonosis. Objectives: To explore the awareness and risk behaviors of the residents in Nham commune, A Luoi district towards zoonosis transmission. To determine the factors related to the risk behaviors of the residents. Methods: A sectional-cross study was conducted among 230 residents whose ages range from 18 – 85, currently living in Nham commune, A Luoi district, adjacent to the Vietnam – Laos border. All participants were interviewed directly with a questionnaire including the following categories: demographics, household wealth, awareness of zoonosis, livestock management and behaviors related to wildlife animals. Descriptive analysis and multivariable logistic regression analysis were conducted to determine factors associated with risk behaviors. Results: The proportion of respondents who have heard about zoonotic diseases was 40%. The majority of subjects raise free-range livestock (83,4%), especially on poultry and cow. The percentage of participants who consumed culled sick and dead animals accounted for 26%, over 30% of villagers slept in forest and more than 50% consumed bushmeat. Risk behaviors related to management livestock and wildlife were statistically significantly associated with gender, age of subjects, educational background, household wealth, information approach on zoonosis, and the number of livestocks. Conclusions: The proportion of respondents who have heard about zoonotic diseases was 40%. The high-risk group falls on those who consume dead domestic animals, wildlife animals and sleep in the forest. Behaviors of human-wildlife contact and zoonosis are quite common with the Nham locals, which emphasizes the necessity for intervention programs in zoonotic disease control.

The Epidemiology of Interpandemic and Pandemic Influenza in Vietnam, 2007–2010: The Ha Nam Household Cohort Study I

Prospective community-based studies have provided fundamental insights into the epidemiology of influenza in temperate regions, but few comparable studies have been undertaken in the tropics. The authors conducted prospective influenza surveillance and intermittent seroprevalence surveys in a household-based cohort in Vietnam between December 2007 and April 2010, resulting in 1,793 person-seasons of influenza surveillance. Age- and sex-standardized estimates of the risk of acquiring any influenza infection per season in persons 5 years of age or older were 21.1% (95% confidence interval: 17.4, 24.7) in season 1, 26.4% (95% confidence interval: 22.6, 30.2) in season 2, and 17.0% (95% confidence interval: 13.6, 20.4) in season 3. Some individuals experienced multiple episodes of infection with different influenza types/subtypes in the same season (n = 27) or reinfection with the same subtype in different seasons (n = 22). The highest risk of influenza infection was in persons 5–9 years old, in whom the risk of influenza infection per season was 41.8%. Although the highest infection risk was in school-aged children, there were important heterogeneities in the age of infection by subtype and season. These heterogeneities could influence the impact of school closure and childhood vaccination on influenza transmission in tropical areas, such as Vietnam

Transitions in diatom assemblages and pigments through dry and wet season conditions in the Red River, Hanoi (Vietnam)

Background and aims – Biomonitoring is an important tool for assessing river water quality, but is not routinely applied in tropical rivers. Marked hydrological changes can occur between wet and dry season conditions in the tropics. Thus, a prerequisite for ecological assessment is that the influence of ‘natural’ hydrological change on biota can be distinguished from variability driven by water quality parameters of interest. Here we aimed to (a) assess seasonal changes in water quality, diatoms and algal assemblages from river phytoplankton and artificial substrates through the dry-wet season transition (February–July 2018) in the Red River close to Hanoi and (b) evaluate the potential for microscopic counts and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis of chlorophyll and carotenoid pigments for biomonitoring in large tropical rivers.Methods – River water (phytoplankton) and biofilms grown on artificial glass substrates were sampled monthly through the dry (February–April) to wet (May–August) season transition and analysed via microscopic and HPLC techniques.Key results – All phototrophic communities shifted markedly between the dry and wet seasons. Phytoplankton concentrations were low (ca. thousands of cells/mL) and declined as the wet season progressed. The dominant phytoplankton taxa were centric diatoms (Aulacoseira granulata and Aulacoseira distans) and chlorophytes (Scenedesmus and Pediastrum spp.), with chlorophytes becoming more dominant in the wet season. Biofilm diatoms were dominated by Melosira varians, and areal densities declined in the wet season when fast-growing pioneer diatom taxa (e.g. Achnanthidium minutissimum, Planothidium lanceolatum) and non-degraded Chlorophyll a concentrations increased, suggesting active phytobenthos growth in response to scour damage. Otherwise, a-phorbins were very abundant in river seston and biofilms indicating in situ Chlorophyll a degradation which may be typical of tropical river environments. The very large range of total suspended solids (reaching > 120 mg L-1) and turbidity appears to be a key driver of photoautotrophs through control of light availability.Conclusions – Hydrological change and associated turbidity conditions exceed nutrient influences on photoautotrophs at inter-seasonal scales in this part of the Red River. Inter-seasonal differences might be a useful measure for biomonitoring to help track how changes in suspended solids, a major water quality issue in tropical rivers, interact with other variables of interest

Proteasome inhibition reduces plasma cell and antibody secretion, but not angiotensin II-induced hypertension

IntroductionDepletion of mature B cells affords protection against experimental hypertension. However, whether B cell-mediated hypertension is dependent on differentiation into antibody-secreting cells (ASCs) remains unclear. Using the proteasome inhibitor, bortezomib, the present study tested the effect of ASC reduction on angiotensin II-induced hypertension.MethodsMale C57BL6/J mice were infused with angiotensin II (0.7 mg/kg/day; s.c.) for 28 days via osmotic minipump to induce hypertension. Normotensive control mice received saline infusion. Bortezomib (750 μg/kg) or vehicle (0.1% DMSO) was administered (i.v.) 3 days prior to minipump implantation, and twice weekly thereafter. Systolic blood pressure was measured weekly using tail-cuff plethysmography. Spleen and bone marrow B1 (CD19+B220−), B2 (B220+CD19+) and ASCs (CD138hiSca-1+Blimp-1+) were enumerated by flow cytometry. Serum immunoglobulins were quantified using a bead-based immunoassay.ResultsBortezomib treatment reduced splenic ASCs by ∼68% and ∼64% compared to vehicle treatment in normotensive (2.00 ± 0.30 vs. 0.64 ± 0.15 × 105 cells; n = 10–11) and hypertensive mice (0.52 ± 0.11 vs. 0.14 ± 0.02 × 105 cells; n = 9–11), respectively. Bone marrow ASCs were also reduced by bortezomib in both normotensive (4.75 ± 1.53 vs. 1.71 ± 0.41 × 103 cells; n = 9–11) and hypertensive mice (4.12 ± 0.82 vs. 0.89 ± 0.18 × 103 cells; n = 9–11). Consistent with ASC reductions, bortezomib reduced serum IgM and IgG2a in all mice. Despite these reductions in ASCs and antibody levels, bortezomib did not affect angiotensin II-induced hypertension over 28 days (vehicle: 182 ± 4 mmHg vs. bortezomib: 177 ± 7 mmHg; n = 9–11).ConclusionReductions in ASCs and circulating IgG2a and IgM did not ameliorate experimental hypertension, suggesting other immunoglobulin isotypes or B cell effector functions may promote angiotensin II-induced hypertension

Social Contact Patterns in Vietnam and Implications for the Control of Infectious Diseases

BACKGROUND: The spread of infectious diseases from person to person is determined by the frequency and nature of contacts between infected and susceptible members of the population. Although there is a long history of using mathematical models to understand these transmission dynamics, there are still remarkably little empirical data on contact behaviors with which to parameterize these models. Even starker is the almost complete absence of data from developing countries. We sought to address this knowledge gap by conducting a household based social contact diary in rural Vietnam. METHODS AND FINDINGS: A diary based survey of social contact patterns was conducted in a household-structured community cohort in North Vietnam in 2007. We used generalized estimating equations to model the number of contacts while taking into account the household sampling design, and used weighting to balance the household size and age distribution towards the Vietnamese population. We recorded 6675 contacts from 865 participants in 264 different households and found that mixing patterns were assortative by age but were more homogenous than observed in a recent European study. We also observed that physical contacts were more concentrated in the home setting in Vietnam than in Europe but the overall level of physical contact was lower. A model of individual versus household vaccination strategies revealed no difference between strategies in the impact on R(0). CONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCE: This work is the first to estimate contact patterns relevant to the spread of infections transmitted from person to person by non-sexual routes in a developing country setting. The results show interesting similarities and differences from European data and demonstrate the importance of context specific data

Spatiotemporal evolution of SARS-CoV-2 Alpha and Delta variants during large nationwide outbreak of COVID-19, Vietnam, 2021

We analyzed 1,303 SARS-CoV-2 whole-genome sequences from Vietnam, and found the Alpha and Delta variants were responsible for a large nationwide outbreak of COVID-19 in 2021. The Delta variant was confined to the AY.57 lineage and caused >1.7 million infections and >32,000 deaths. Viral transmission was strongly affected by nonpharmaceutical interventions