BackgroundAs a dual response to the HIV epidemic and the high level of injecting drug use in Vietnam, the Ministry of Health (MOH) initiated a pilot methadone maintenance therapy (MMT) program in Hai Phong and Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) in early 2009. The objectives of the pilot were to provide evidence on whether MMT could be successfully implemented in Vietnam and scaled up to other localities.MethodsA prospective study was conducted among 965 opiate drug users admitted to the pilot. Data on demographic characteristics, sexual behaviors, substance use behaviors (including heroin use), and blood-borne virus infection (HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C) were collected at treatment initiation and then again at 3-, 6-, 9-, 12-, 18-, and 24-month intervals thereafter.ResultsTwenty-four months after treatment initiation, heroin use as measured by urine test or self-report had reduced from 100 % of participants at both sites to 14.6 % in Hai Phong and 22.9 % in HCMC. When adjusted for multiple factors in Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) logistic regression modeling, independent predictors of continued heroin use after 24 months of MMT in HCMC were the following: poor methadone adherence (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 3.7, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.8–7.8); currently on antiretroviral treatment (ART) (AOR = 1.8, 95 % CI 1.4–2.4); currently on TB treatment (AOR = 2.2, 95 % CI 1.4–3.4); currently experiencing family conflict (AOR = 1.6, 95 % CI 1.1–2.4); and currently employed (AOR = 0.8, 95 % CI 0.6–1.0).For Hai Phong participants, predictors were the following: currently on ART (AOR = 2.0, 95 % CI = 1.4–3.0); currently experiencing family conflict (AOR = 2.0, 95 % CI = 1.0–3.9); and moderate adherence to methadone (AOR = 2.1, 95 % CI = 1.2–1.9). In Hai Phong, the percentage of participants who were employed had also increased by end of study from 35.0 to 52.8 %, while in HCMC the level remained relatively unchanged, between 52.2 and 55.1 %.DiscussionStudy findings were used in multiple fora to convince policymakers and the public on the significant and vital role MMT can play in reducing heroin use and improving quality of life for individuals and families. Four years after this study was completed, Vietnam had expanded MMT to 162 clinics in 44 provinces serving 32,000 patients.

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We describe the results of a study to determine the prevalence and characteristics of cytomegalovirus (CMV) retinitis among HIV-infected patients in Vietnam. We conducted a cross-sectional prospective study of patients with CD4 lymphocyte count ≤100 cells/mm(3)recruited from public HIV clinics. The diagnosis was made by a trained ophthalmologist using slit lamp biomicroscopy and corroborated on fundus photography. A total of 201 patients were screened. The median age was 32 years, 77% were men, median CD4 count was 47 cells/mm(3), and 62% were on antiretroviral treatment. Prevalence of CMV retinitis was 7% (14/201, 95% CI 4-11%). CMV retinitis was not associated with age, gender, injection drug use, CD4 count, WHO clinical stage, or antiretroviral treatment status. Blurring of vision and reduced visual acuity <20/40 were associated with CMV retinitis, but only 29% of patients with the diagnosis reported blurry vision and only 64% had abnormal vision. On multivariate analysis, the sole predictor for CMV retinitis was decreased visual acuity (OR 22.8,p < 0.001). In Ho Chi Minh City, CMV retinitis was found in 7% of HIV-infected patients with low CD4. HIV-infected patients with a CD4 count <100/mm(3)or who develop blurring of vision in Vietnam should be screened for CMV retinitis.

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Four essential oils obtained from the aerial parts of Baeckea frutescens harvested in three provinces of Vietnam were analysed using GC, GC–MS and NMR spectroscopy. Forty‐seven components, which represented 90–97% of the global composition, were identified. Two samples were characterized by the pre‐eminence of tasmanone, a non‐terpenic triketone, which accounted for 22.9% and 24.3%, respectively, of the chemical com‐position and which was fully characterized using two‐dimensional NMR spectroscopy. The two remaining samples were respectively characterized by high contents of p‐cymene, α‐thujene and 1,8‐cineole for one sample and β‐pinene, 1,8‐cineole and α‐pinene for the second sample. From these results and the literature data, it appears that B. frutescens essential oil exhibits high chemical variability. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The chemical composition of six oil samples, isolated from aerial parts of Elsholtzia blanda, E. penduliflora and E. winitiana, harvested in two provinces of Vietnam, was investigated by GC, in combination with retention indices (RI), GC/MS and 13 C NMR spectroscopy. Linalool was the major component (75.2 and 56.8%) of the two samples of E. blanda essential oil, whereas the two oil samples from E. penduliflora were dominated by 1,8-cineole (62.7 and 65.5%). Conversely, the two oil samples of E. winitiana exhibited different compositions, rosefuran (56.0%) and dehydroelsholtzia ketone (22.8%) being the major components of one sample, whilst the second sample was dominated by elsholtzia ketone (87.5%).

This paper, which is not a research paper, elaborates on the innovations made in English linguistics undergraduate courses at the University of Languages and International Studies - Vietnam National University, Hanoi (ULIS) during the last ten years, from 2009 to 2018. The report on the changes in teaching and learning English linguistics was informed from the 4 published research papers, the contents of which functioned as jigsaw pieces together combining and complementing to make up the complete picture of teaching and learning English linguistics at ULIS over the last decade. The report was also informed from the observation of how English linguistics has been taught and learnt over the last ten years by the author in the roles of a teacher of English linguistics and a course developer at ULIS as well. The comparison between the scenarios of English linguistics teaching and learning before and after 2014 was made, from which the outstanding innovations in teaching and learning English linguistics over the last decade could be seen.

Porous graphitic biochar was synthesized by one-step treatment biomass using potassium ferrate (K 2 FeO 4 ) as activator for both carbonization and graphitization processes. The modified biochar (Fe@BC) was applied for the removal of diclofenac sodium (DCF) in an aqueous solution. The as-prepared material possesses a well-developed micro/mesoporous and graphitic structure, which can strengthen its adsorption capacity towards DCF. The experimental results indicated that the maximum adsorption capacity (q max ) of Fe@BC for DCF obtained from Langmuir isotherm simulation was 123.45 mg·L −1 and it was a remarkable value of DCF adsorption in comparison with that of other biomass-based adsorbents previously reported. Thermodynamic quality and effect of ionic strength studies demonstrated that the adsorption was a endothermic process, and higher environmental temperatures may be more favorable for the uptake of DCF onto Fe@BC surface; however, the presence of NaCl in the solution slightly obstructed DCF adsorption. Adsorption capacity was found to be decreased with the increase of solution pH. Additionally, the possible mechanism of the DCF adsorption process on Fe@BC may involve chemical adsorption with the presence of H-bonding and π-π interaction. With high adsorption capacity and reusability, Fe@BC was found to be a promising absorbent for DCF removal from water as well as for water purification applications.