Laparoscopic caudate lobectomy for large hepatoblastoma in children: A case report.

Hepatoblastoma originating in the caudate lobe (segment 1) is extremely rare. Complete resection of the caudate lobe, without sacrificing other parts of the liver, remains a surgical challenge. We present our experience with laparoscopic complete resection of caudate lobe hepatoblastoma for a 7-years-old girl, with a history of hepatitis B.

Hypospadias associated with partial bifid phallus: A case report.

Diphallia is an extremely rare congenital anomaly. Bifid phallus is a type of diphallia and is rarely recorded in published studies. According to the degree of separation of the penises at the base of the shaft or just at the glans, bifid phallus is further classified into complete or partial forms.

Change in Compliance of Staff at 4 Vietnam Universities after the Enactment of Smoke-free Environment Decree.

Background: The Tobacco Control Law in Vietnam was adopted in 2012 and came into force from May 2013, followed by a number of guiding sub-law legal documents. Smoke-free campus policy in university is considered an important measure to protect people from secondhand smoking as well as staffs and students will be in favour of the policy. Furthermore, there has been evidence suggested that smoke-free policy had positive impact on active smoking as well as anti-smoking attitude.

Treatment of complex complications after choledochal cyst resection by multiple minimal invasive therapies: A case report.

Introduction: Choledochal cyst is a rare benign congenital dilation of the bile duct, which causes recurring disturbing symptoms without totally resection. Nonetheless, postoperative complications are still a common issue. A step up management for patients with complex complications is required to address the problem.

Stress, anxiety and depression in clinical nurses in Vietnam: a cross-sectional survey and cluster analysis.

Background: Hospital nurses are exposed to various work-related factors that may be associated with increased risk of developing different mental disorders. Empirical evidence on the prevalence and correlates of individual mental health problems such as stress, anxiety and depression is widely reported, while a combined pattern of these conditions is unknown. This study aims to examine the co-occurrence of stress, anxiety and depression among clinical nurses, and to explore socio-demographic characteristics of, and working conditions experienced by, nurses that may be associated with these three mental health conditions.

Salience and Impact of Health Warning Label on Cigarette Packs in Vietnam: Findings From the Global Adult Tobacco Survey 2015.

Viet Nam is among the countries having highest rate of male smokers in the world. The country has joined the Global Tobacco Surveillance System since 2010. Under this system, two rounds of Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) were conducted in 2010 and 2015.

Characteristics of greenhouse gas emissions from an anaerobic wastewater treatment system in a natural rubber processing factory.

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from both open-type and closed anaerobic wastewater treatment systems in a natural rubber processing factory in Vietnam were surveyed. In this factory, wastewater was treated by an open-type anaerobic baffled reactor (OABR) that comprised 60 compartments. A part of the wastewater was fed to a pilot-scale up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor to enable a comparison of the process performance and GHG emission characteristics with those of the OABR.

Performance evaluation of the pilot scale upflow anaerobic sludge blanket - Downflow hanging sponge system for natural rubber processing wastewater treatment in South Vietnam.

A pilot-scale upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB)-downflow hanging sponge system (DHS) combined with an anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR) and a settling tank (ST) was installed in a natural rubber processing factory in South Vietnam and its process performance was evaluated for 267days. The UASB reactor achieved a total removal efficiency of 55.6±16.

Development of downflow hanging sponge (DHS) reactor as post treatment of existing combined anaerobic tank treating natural rubber processing wastewater.

Conventional aerated tank technology is widely applied for post treatment of natural rubber processing wastewater in Southeast Asia; however, a long hydraulic retention time (HRT) is required and the effluent standards are exceeded. In this study, a downflow hanging sponge (DHS) reactor was installed as post treatment of anaerobic tank effluent in a natural rubber factory in South Vietnam and the process performance was evaluated. The DHS reactor demonstrated removal efficiencies of 64.

New strategy toward dioxin risk reduction for local residents surrounding severe dioxin hotspots in Vietnam.

Background: A public health intervention program with active involvement of local related stakeholders was piloted in the Bien Hoa dioxin hotspot (2007-2009), and then expanded to the Da Nang dioxin hotspot in Vietnam (2009-2011). It aimed to reduce the risk of dioxin exposure of local residents through foods. This article presents the results of the intervention in Da Nang.

Environmental health risk assessment of dioxin exposure through foods in a dioxin hot spot-Bien Hoa City, Vietnam.

This study used the Australian Environmental Health Risk Assessment Framework to assess the human health risk of dioxin exposure through foods for local residents in two wards of Bien Hoa City, Vietnam. These wards are known hot-spots for dioxin and a range of stakeholders from central government to local levels were involved in this process. Publications on dioxin characteristics and toxicity were reviewed and dioxin concentrations in local soil, mud, foods, milk and blood samples were used as data for this risk assessment.

Deficiency in the divalent metal transporter 1 increases bleomycin-induced lung injury.

Exposure to bleomycin can result in an inflammatory lung injury. The biological effect of this anti-neoplastic agent is dependent on its coordination of iron with subsequent oxidant generation. In lung cells, divalent metal transporter 1 (DMT1) can participate in metal transport resulting in control of an oxidative stress and tissue damage.

Antisense transcripts are targets for activating small RNAs.

Agents that activate expression of specific genes to probe cellular pathways or alleviate disease would go beyond existing approaches for controlling gene expression. Duplex RNAs complementary to promoter regions can repress or activate gene expression. The mechanism of these promoter-directed antigene RNAs (agRNAs) has been obscure.

Hepcidin expression and iron transport in alveolar macrophages.

Alveolar macrophages express many proteins important in iron homeostasis, including the iron importer divalent metal transport 1 (DMT1) and the iron exporter ferroportin 1 (FPN1) that likely participate in lung defense. We found the iron regulatory hormone hepcidin (HAMP) is also produced by alveolar macrophages. In mouse alveolar macrophages, HAMP mRNA was detected at a low level when not stimulated but at a high level when exposed to lipopolysaccharide (LPS).

The inflammatory and normal transcriptome of mouse bladder detrusor and mucosa.

Background: An organ such as the bladder consists of complex, interacting set of tissues and cells. Inflammation has been implicated in every major disease of the bladder, including cancer, interstitial cystitis, and infection. However, scanty is the information about individual detrusor and urothelium transcriptomes in response to inflammation.

Regulation of hepcidin and ferroportin expression by lipopolysaccharide in splenic macrophages.

Acute and chronic inflammatory states are associated with many changes in intracellular iron metabolism including sequestration of iron in the mononuclear-phagocyte system (MPS) and a decline in serum iron. Previous work in rodent models of acute inflammation has demonstrated inflammation-induced downregulation of intestinal and MPS iron exporter, ferroportin 1, mRNA and protein. In addition, these models have also demonstrated hepatic induction of mRNA of the small 25 amino acid peptide hepcidin.

Gene expression profiling of inflammatory bladder disorders.

Inflammation underlies all major bladder pathologies including malignancy and represents a defense reaction to injury caused by physical damage, chemical substances, micro-organisms or other agents. During acute inflammation, activation of specific molecular pathways leads to an increased expression of selected genes whose products attack the insult, but ultimately should protect the tissue from the noxious stimulus. However, once the stimulus ceases, gene-expression should return to basal levels to avoid tissue damage, fibrosis, loss of function, and chronic inflammation.

Expression of protease-activated receptor-1, -2, -3, and -4 in control and experimentally inflamed mouse bladder.

Inflammation underlines all major bladder pathologies and represents a defense reaction to injury involving a mandatory participation of mast cells and sensory nerves. Mast cells are particularly frequent in close proximity to epithelial surfaces where they are strategically located in the bladder and release their mediators in response to inflammation. Tryptase is specifically produced by mast cells and modulates inflammation by activating protease-activated receptors (PARs).

Neurokinin 1 receptors and neprilysin modulation of mouse bladder gene regulation.

Neurokinin 1 (NK(1)) receptors play a fundamental role in neurogenic inflammation. We sought to determine the mechanisms downstream from NK(1) receptor (NK(1)R) activation using cDNA arrays and a novel statistical method to analyze gene expression. We used female NK(1)R(-/-) and wild-type (WT) mice that were sensitized actively by intraperitoneal injections of dinitrophenol 4 (DNP(4))-human serum albumin.

Mast cells mediate substance P-induced bladder inflammation through an NK(1) receptor-independent mechanism.

The role of neurokinin-1 receptors (NK1R) in the interaction between mast cells and substance P (SP) in bladder inflammation was determined. Mast cell-deficient Kit(W)/Kit(W-v), congenic normal (+/+), and Kit(W)/Kit(W-v) mice that were reconstituted with bone marrow cells isolated from NK1R(-/-) mice were challenged by instillation of SP, antigen, or saline into the urinary bladder. Twenty-four hours after challenge, the bladders were prepared for morphological assessment and gene expression.

Gene expression profiling of mouse bladder inflammatory responses to LPS, substance P, and antigen-stimulation.

Inflammatory bladder disorders such as interstitial cystitis (IC) deserve attention since a major problem of the disease is diagnosis. IC affects millions of women and is characterized by severe pain, increased frequency of micturition, and chronic inflammation. Characterizing the molecular fingerprint (gene profile) of IC will help elucidate the mechanisms involved and suggest further approaches for therapeutic intervention.