Tobacco and electronic cigarette smoking among in-school adolescents in Vietnam between 2013 and 2019: prevalence and associated factors.

BACKGROUND: Smoking among adolescents in schools is a major global public health concern. There is limited evidence regarding prevalence and associated factors in Vietnam. OBJECTIVE: To compare the prevalence of smoking and associated factors among in-school adolescents aged 13-17 years in Vietnam between 2013 and 2019. METHODS: Data were collected from two rounds of the national representative Vietnam Global School-based Student Health Survey (GSHS) conducted in 2013 (n = 3,331) and 2019 (n = 7,690). Logistic regression was used to identify the factors associated with tobacco and electronic cigarette smoking among in-school adolescents. RESULTS: There was a significant reduction in the prevalence of current smoking (water pipes and cigarettes) from 5.4% (95% CI: 4.0-7.2) in 2013 to 2.8% (95% CI: 2.2-3.6) in 2019. In 2019, 2.6% of the in-school adolescents reported having used electronic cigarette products 30 days prior to the survey. Factors associated with a significantly higher likelihood of current smoking status included gender, loneliness, suicidal ideation, sexual activity, truancy, and alcohol consumption. Similar patterns were observed for e-cigarettes. CONCLUSION: Smoking among in-school adolescents in Vietnam decreased between 2013 and 2019. Follow-up studies are needed to further investigate causal factors so that future policies and communication programmes can be more effectively targeted to reduce smoking in adolescents.

Ambient air monitoring around the dioxin remediation site in Da Nang, Vietnam, using passive air samplers.

The concentrations and temporal variations of polychlorodibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorodibenzofurans (PCDDs/PCDFs) in ambient air between March 2013 and February 2017 were investigated by passive air samplers containing polyurethane foam (PUF) disks in the dioxin remediation area using in-pile thermal desorption (IPTD) technology at Da Nang airport, Vietnam. The PCDD/PCDF concentrations in ambient air at each site depended on the location of the emission sources and the wind direction, the dioxin contamination level of excavated materials, the periods of excavation and transport, and the operation of the IPTD treatment system. The PCDD/PCDF concentrations were the highest in the former Agent Orange mixing and loading area (AOMLA), which was the closest to the IPTD system, with total toxic equivalent (TEQ) values ranging from 0.437 to 15.3 pg/PUF/day. The total TEQ concentrations in the Sen Lake area ranged from 0.138 to 2.41 pg/PUF/day. The lowest concentration of PCDDs/PCDFs occurred in the northern perimeter area, with total TEQ values ranging from 0.164 to 0.972 pg/PUF/day. The decreasing trend of the PCDD/PCDF concentrations in ambient air was confirmed over time at all three monitoring sites, among which there was a strong decrease in the former AOMLA after February 2015. Residents living near the Da Nang airport were at a low risk of being exposed to PCDDs/PCDFs through inhalation during remediation project implementation, while residents living close to the former AOMLA faced elevated risks with an average daily dose of PCDDs/PCDFs through inhalation ranging from 0.017 to 0.82 pg TEQ/kg body weight/day.

Self-reported non-communicable diseases and associated socio-demographic status among ethnic minority populations in Vietnam, 2019.

The aim of this study was to report the prevalence of self-reported non-communicable diseases among ethnic minority populations in Vietnam and related factors. A total of 5033 individuals aged 15 years and older who belonged to ethnic minority populations from 12 provinces in Vietnam completed a household survey. The overall prevalence of self-reported non-communicable diseases was 12.4% (95% CI: 11.5%-13.4%). Cardiovascular diseases were the most prevalent, followed by diabetes. Ethnicity was shown to have an independently significant correlation to having any non-communicable diseases. Older people, near-poor and non-poor people had significantly higher odds of having non-communicable diseases as compared to younger and poor people.

Training need assessment for a master training program in Environmental Health program in Vietnam.

Vietnam is facing a shortage of skilled Environmental health workforce. A Training Needs Assessment was conducted to develop a list of environmental health tasks, a list of core competencies and assess the need for a Master of Environmental Health training program in Vietnam. To answer these questions, a cross-sectional study was conducted in Vietnam in 2017, using both qualitative and quantitative methods. The qualitative study involved a desk review, 29 in-depth interviews, two consultative workshops, and two expert meetings. For the quantitative component, 298 environmental health staff working at different levels completed a structured postal questionnaire. Results showed that different sectors were implementing various environmental health tasks but that there was currently no training program focusing on environmental health in Vietnam. Thirteen core competencies for a Master of Environmental Health were recommended. An urgent need to develop training programs to help building environmental health competencies at the Masters degree level was uniformly expressed. This could be achieved by developing a Master of Public Health with an Environmental Health stream in the short-term and a Master of Environmental Health program in the long-term.

Climate Variability and Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever in Ba Tri District, Ben Tre Province, Vietnam during 2004-2014.

BACKGROUND: Currently, dengue fever/dengue hemorrhagic fever (DF/DHF) is an important public health challenge in many areas, including the Ba Tri District, Ben Tre Province, Vietnam. METHODS AND AIM: This study was conducted in 2015 using a retrospective secondary data analysis on monthly data of DF/DHF cases and climate conditions from 2004-2014 in Ba Tri District, which aimed to explore the relationship between DF/DHF and climate variables. RESULTS: During the period of 2004-2014, there were 5728 reported DF/DHF cases and five deaths. The disease occurred year round, with peaked from May to October and the highest number of cases occurred in June and July. There were strong correlations between monthly DF/DHF cases within that period with average rainfall (r = 0.70), humidity (r = 0.59), mosquito density (r = 0.82), and Breteau index (r = 0.81). A moderate association was observed between the monthly average number of DF/DHF cases and the average temperature (r = 0.37). The monthly DF/DHF cases were also moderately correlated with the Aedes mosquito density. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS: Local health authorities need to monitor DF/DHF cases at the beginning of epidemic period, starting from April and to apply timely disease prevention measures to avoid the spreading of the disease in the following months. More vector control efforts should be implemented in March and April, just before the rainy season, which can help to reduce the vector density and the epidemic risk. A larger scale study using national data and for a longer period of time should be undertaken to thoroughly describe the correlation between climate variability and DF/DHF cases as well as for modeling and building projection model for the disease in the coming years. This can play an important role for active prevention of DF/DHF in Vietnam under the impacts of climate change and weather variability.