Ag@AgCl nanoparticles grafted on carbon nanofiber: an efficient visible light plasmonic photocatalyst via bandgap reduction.

A novel silver@silver chloride/carbon nanofiber (Ag@AgCl/CNF) hybrid was synthesized by electrospinning, heat treament, and subsequentin situchemical oxidation strategy. The synthesized materials were characterized using x-ray diffraction, Fourier-transform infrared, UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and energy dispersive x-ray. The experimental results reveal that the electrospun AgNO3/PAN was carbonized and reduced to Ag/CNF, the Ag/CNF was then partly oxidized to form Ag@AgCl/CNF in which Ag@AgCl nanoparticles (ca. 10-20 nm in diameter) were uniformly bounded to CNFs (ca. 165 nm in diameter). The obtained Ag@AgCl/CNF was employed for Na2S2O8activation under visible light irradiation to treat Rhodamine B (RhB). A remarkable RhB removal of ca. 94.68% was achieved under optimal conditions, and the influence of various parameters on removal efficiency was studied. Quenching experiments revealed that HO•, SO4•-,1O2, and O2•-were major reactive oxygen species, in which O2•-played a pivotal role in RhB degradation. A possible mechanistic route for RhB degradation was proposed.

Modelling in economic evaluation of mental health prevention: current status and quality of studies.

BACKGROUND: The present study aimed to identify and critically appraise the quality of model-based economic evaluation studies in mental health prevention. METHODS: A systematic search was performed on MEDLINE, EMBASE, EconLit, PsycINFO, and Web of Science. Two reviewers independently screened for eligible records using predefined criteria and extracted data using a pre-piloted data extraction form. The 61-item Philips Checklist was used to critically appraise the studies. Systematic review registration number: CRD42020184519. RESULTS: Forty-nine studies were eligible to be included. Thirty studies (61.2%) were published in 2015-2021. Forty-seven studies were conducted for higher-income countries. There were mainly cost-utility analyses (n = 31) with the dominant primary outcome of quality-adjusted life year. The most common model was Markov (n = 26). Most of the studies were conducted from a societal or health care perspective (n = 37). Only ten models used a 50-year time horizon (n = 2) or lifetime horizon (n = 8). A wide range of mental health prevention strategies was evaluated with the dominance of selective/indicate strategy and focusing on common mental health problems (e.g., depression, suicide). The percentage of the Philip checkilst's criteria fulfilled by included studies was 69.3% on average and ranged from 43.3 to 90%. Among three domains of the Philip checklist, criteria on the model structure were fulfilled the most (72.1% on average, ranging from 50.0% to 91.7%), followed by the data domain (69.5% on average, ranging from 28.9% to 94.0%) and the consistency domain (54.6% on average, ranging from 20.0% to 100%). The practice of identification of 'relevant' evidence to inform model structure and inputs was inadequately performed. The model validation practice was rarely reported. CONCLUSIONS: There is an increasing number of model-based economic evaluations of mental health prevention available to decision-makers, but evidence has been limited to the higher-income countries and the short-term horizon. Despite a high level of heterogeneity in study scope and model structure among included studies, almost all mental health prevention interventions were either cost-saving or cost-effective. Future models should make efforts to conduct in the low-resource context setting, expand the time horizon, improve the evidence identification to inform model structure and inputs, and promote the practice of model validation.

Does National Colorectal Cancer Screening Program Represent Good Value for Money? Results from a Return-on-Investment Model in Vietnam.

To provide important evidence for the resource allocation process in Vietnam, this research was conducted to explore the return on investment (ROI) of the national colorectal cancer (CRC) screening program. A decision tree model was designed to estimate the cost and cost savings of a national screening program (ie, providing annual fecal occult blood test [FOBT], following with colonoscopy in case of FOBT positive for the medium-risk group over 50 years old) compared to no screening scenario. This was the first attempt in estimating the ROI of a public health program in Vietnam. Although there was a wide variation due to the uncertainty of the input parameters, especially regarding the coverage of the colorectal cancer screening program in the community, the calculated ROI rates in all different cases were positive, demonstrating that the national colorectal cancer screening program brought benefits to the investment. With a modest coverage of 30% of the population over the age of 50, the corresponding ROI value was 325.4% (95%UI: 321.0; 329.9). The results of this study could be used to advocate for the implementation of a national colorectal cancer screening program in terms of the monetary benefits of investing in the program.

Efficacy of Two Regimens for Colon Cleansing Using Polyethylene Glycol 4000: A Randomized Open Label Trial.

AIM: To compare effectiveness, safety and tolerance of two colon cleansing regimens using polyethylene glycol 4000 (PEG) in children. METHODS: Prospective, randomized, open clinical trial carried out in 129 children, 3 to 18 years old undergoing colonoscopy. Patients were randomized into two groups, 64 children received PEG with electrolyte (50 mL/kg) and oral bisacodyl (PEG+B group) or 65 other children received PEG with electrolyte (70 mL/kg) and glycerol enema (PEG+G group). RESULTS: Both regimens showed a good colon cleansing effectiveness with the percentage of successful cleansing being 93.8% for PEG+B regimen and 89.1% for PEG+G regimen (P=0.51). There was no statistically significant difference between the pre-regimen and post-regimen laboratory values. The rates of nausea (65.6% vs 31.3%; P<0.001) and bloating (50% vs 17.2%; P<0.001) of PEG+G group were significantly higher than that of PEG+B group. CONCLUSION: Both regimens had good efficacy and safety for colon cleansing in children. The tolerance of PEG+B regimen was better.

Health Insurance Reimbursement to Hosptials in Vietnam: Policy Implementation Results and Challenges.

In Vietnam, social health insurance (SHI) benefit package has been defined in a more explicit approach with the introduction of a regulation on the list of conditional reimbursed and non-reimbursed medical services. This paper aims to analyze the implementation results of this regulation from an economical perspective as well as the implementation challenges. Mix-method approach was employed. The quantitative component was employed to understand the implementation results. Desk study and qualitative components (2 inteviews with key informants from Ministry of Health; 6 discussions with key informants from provincial Social Security Offices and Departments of Health in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hue, Tuyen Quang, Thai Binh and Soc Trang provinces; the other 23 discussions and 31 interviews with key informants from 23 selected hospitals) was employed to summarize the implementation challenges. The regulation seems to not able to mitigate the reimbursement of high-technology and expensive services in higher-level providers. There is a sign of increasing out-of-pocket payments for those regulated services in higher-level providers. It has also posed greater influence on lower-level providers in terms of the proportion of reimbursement amount rather than to higher-level hospitals. Applying World Health Organization's 6 building blocks of health system to analyze the implementation challenges, we provide policymakers evidence to improve the regulation, as well as point out the relating health system weakness need to be strengthened.

Enhanced biomineralization and protein adsorption capacity of 3D chitosan/hydroxyapatite biomimetic scaffolds applied for bone-tissue engineering.

This work presents the enhanced biomineralization and protein adsorption capacity of 3D chitosan/hydroxyapatite (CS/HAp) biomimetic scaffolds synthesized from natural sources applied for bone-tissue engineering (BTE). The scaffolds were prepared by the freeze-drying method, then characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, liquid substitution, swelling behavior, and mechanical strength. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy was also conducted to investigate the interaction between chitosan (CS) and hydroxyapatite (HAp). The biodegradation, biomineralization and protein adsorption capabilities of the scaffolds were evaluated through tests in vitro. Results showed that the 3D CS/HAp scaffolds exhibited highly porous structures with an average pore size of 265 µm, and mean porosity of 75.01%, respectively; the tensile strength of the scaffolds was 2.45 MPa, matching well with that of cancellous bone. The addition of HAp into the CS matrix efficiently decreased the swelling percentage of the CS/HAp scaffolds and retained the suitable degradation rate of the composite scaffolds; the degradation percentage of the CS/HAp scaffolds was 46.37% after 28 days immersed in a physiological solution. The CS/HAp scaffolds demonstrated a higher biomineralization capability than that of the CS scaffolds, releasing a bone-like apatite layer on their surface after 15 days of incubation in simulated body fluids. The presence of HAp mimicking biological apatite in the composite scaffolds facilitated a higher protein adsorption capability, compared to that of the CS scaffolds. The obtained results suggest that the CS/HAp scaffolds have great potential as biocompatible materials for BTE applications.

Association of Human Leukocyte Antigen Haplotypes With End-Stage Renal Disease in Vietnamese Patients Prior to First Transplantation.

INTRODUCTION: The prevalence of chronic kidney failure is significantly increasing in Vietnam, causing a burden for health care. This study assessed the relationship of HLA-A, -B, and -DRB1 alleles with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). METHOD: A retrospective, cross-sectional study and a comparative study using secondary data analysis were conducted on 196 ESRD patients and 187 controls from 2009 to 2017. The patient and donor profiles were collected from medical records, including age, sex, etiology of renal failure, and HLA phenotypes. HLA-A*, -B*, and -DRB1* typing were done by polymerase chain reaction-sequence specific primers. RESULT: The most frequent HLA alleles in Vietnamese patients with ESRD were HLA-A*02, -A*11, -B*15, -B*46, -DRB1*04, -DRB1*09, and -DRB1*12. The haplotypes HLA-A*0233 (odds ratio [OR] = 0.40, 95% CI: 0.15-0.98) had a negative association for ESRD. The haplotypes HLA-B*1515 (OR = 4.14, 95% CI: 1.52-11.26) and HLA-DRB1*1212 (OR = 2.01, 95% CI: 1.06-3.81) had a positive association for ESRD. The haplotypes HLA-B*1515 (OR = 4.69, 95% CI: 1.69-13.03) and -DRB1*1212 (OR = 2.15, 95% CI: 1.10-4.21) had a positive association for ESRD related to glomerulonephritis. The HLA-B*1557 (OR = 17.34, 95% CI: 2.70-11.49) had a positive association for ESRD related to hypertension. CONCLUSION: The haplotypes of HLA class I and II had significant relationships with ESRD. The results of our study should be confirmed in further investigations.

Schizophrenia interventions in Vietnam: primary results from a cost-effectiveness study.

Schizophrenia is a highly disabling mental health disorder that imposes a considerable economic burden on a health care system. This paper aimed to examine the cost and effectiveness of alternative pharmaceutical interventions and the effects of family intervention (FI) for schizophrenia from the government perspective in order to introduce the most cost-effective intervention applicable to Vietnam. A Markov model was developed to estimate costs and health outcome over patients' lifetimes when using typical and atypical antipsychotic drugs, alone or in combination with family intervention. Health outcome was measured in terms of disability-adjusted life years averted. Monte Carlo simulation was used for uncertainty analysis. According to our findings, interventions using typical or atypical drugs combined with FI were found to be the most effective and least costly compared to a 'do-nothing' scenario. Interventions using atypical drugs alone were estimated to be much less favourable due to a considerably higher cost. This is a very first attempt on cost-effectiveness analysis of interventions for schizophrenia in Vietnam, and recommendations are made for future research to determine the most cost-effective intervention.