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Copyright of Environmental & Social Management Journal / Revista de Gestão Social e Ambiental is the property of Environmental & Social Management Journal and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objective: The prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in Vietnam has doubled from 3% to 6% over the last decades, with potential consequences for persons with diabetes and their caregivers. This study aimed to assess caregiver burdens and factors associated with caregiver burden. Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2019, using data from 1,241 informal caregivers (ICGs). Caregiver burden was scored from 0–32 using 8 questions from the Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI). Quantile regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with caregiver burden. Results: The median score of the ZBI was 7.0 (Q1-Q3: 2.0–10.0), indicating that the burden among caregiver of persons with T2DM is not high. Quantile regression showed that the higher the monthly income, the lower the burden among caregivers (50% quantile and 75% quantile of burden: -0.004). Lower educational level (25%Q: 4.0, 50%Q; 3.0, 75%Q: 2.16), being a farmer (25%Q: 2.0) and providing care to other people besides the person with T2DM (25%Q: 2.0, 50%Q; 2.54, 75%Q: 1.66) were associated with higher burden on caregivers. Conclusion: The study found that caregivers facing additional life stressors, such as low income or other caregiving responsibilities, reported higher levels of burden. These findings could inform the development of interventions targeted at supporting informal caregivers in rural areas in low- and middle-income countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flash floods are one of the most dangerous natural disasters, especially in hilly terrain, causing loss of life, property, and infrastructures and sudden disruption of traffic. These types of floods are mostly associated with landslides and erosion of roads within a short time. Most of Vietnam is hilly and mountainous; thus, the problem due to flash flood is severe and requires systematic studies to correctly identify flood susceptible areas for proper landuse planning and traffic management. In this study, three Machine Learning (ML) methods namely Deep Learning Neural Network (DL), Correlation-based Feature Weighted Naive Bayes (CFWNB), and Adaboost (AB-CFWNB) were used for the development of flash flood susceptibility maps for hilly road section (115 km length) of National Highway (NH)-6 in Hoa Binh province, Vietnam. In the proposed models, 88 past flash flood events were used together with 14 flash floods affecting topographical and geo-environmental factors. The performance of the models was evaluated using standard statistical measures including Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) Curve, Area Under Curve (AUC) and Root Mean Square Error (RMSE). The results revealed that all the models performed well (AUC > 0.80) in predicting flash flood susceptibility zones, but the performance of the DL model is the best (AUC: 0.972, RMSE: 0.352). Therefore, the DL model can be applied to develop an accurate flash flood susceptibility map of hilly terrain which can be used for proper planning and designing of the highways and other infrastructure facilities besides landuse management of the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an experimental design aimed at enhancing creativity in mathematics among secondary school students. The quasi-experimental research was conducted at two urban secondary schools and one rural school in Hanoi and Nam Dinh provinces, Vietnam, involving 229 grade 6 students and three teachers. The study found that creativity-enriched mathematics instruction, grounded in the principles of realistic mathematics education, such as the use of practical contexts, cultivation of students' experiences, provision of self-initiated and collaborative learning opportunities, and didactic orientation, can foster the development of creative competencies in mathematics. Moreover, the research demonstrates the feasibility and effectiveness of implementing creativity-enriched instruction in various school settings. These findings can help raise awareness among educators and inspire them to modify their teaching methods to promote the development of students' creative competencies, which are increasingly critical in the era of the fourth industrial revolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most biologically natural compounds are very sensitive and easily degradable under drying conditions. This study aimed to investigate the effect of drying temperature on the contents of phenolic compounds and in vitro antioxidant and antidiabetic activities of wild guava leaves. Wild guava leaves were dried at 40 °C, 50 °C, 60 °C, 70 °C, and 80 °C, as well as sun drying (SD). The total phenolic and flavonoid contents (TPC and TFC) were measured using the colorimetric method. Antioxidant activity was determined by the 2,2-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl hydrate (DPPH) and 2,2-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) radical scavenging activity assays. In vitro antidiabetic activity was measured by assessing α-glucosidase and α-amylase inhibitory activities. The contents of individual phenolic compounds were determined using ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC). The principal component analysis (PCA) results revealed that hot air drying at different temperatures had significantly different effects on the bioactive compounds and biological properties of guava leaves. Drying at high or low temperatures resulted in a higher degradable rate of bioactive compounds leading to a weakening of the biological properties. Drying at 50 °C resulted in high TPC and TFC as well as the highest in vitro antioxidant and antidiabetic activities. Furthermore, the highest contents of gallic acid, catechin, rutin, quercetin, apigenin, quercitrin, vitexin, and apigenin-7- O -D-glucopyranoside were found in samples dried at 50 °C, whereas the highest contents of chlorogenic acid, epicatechin, and ellagic acid were observed in samples dried at 60 °C. Therefore, drying at 50 °C was the suitable temperature for retaining valuable biological compounds in wild guava leaves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: People with diabetes are at high risk of polypharmacy owing to complex treatment of diabetes and comorbidities. Polypharmacy is associated with increased risk of adverse reactions and decreased compliance. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to assess polypharmacy in people with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and associated diabetes-related factors in rural areas in Vietnam. Method: People with T2D (n = 806) who had received treatment for diabetes at a district hospital were invited to participate in a questionnaire-based cross-sectional survey. Polypharmacy was defined as ≥5 types of medicine and assessed as a) prescription medicine and non-prescription/over the counter (OTC) medicine and b) prescription medicine and non-prescription/OTC, herbal and traditional medicine, and dietary supplement. Multiple logistic regression was used to investigate the association between polypharmacy and diabetes specific factors: duration, comorbidities and diabetes-related distress. Results: Of the people with T2D, 7.8% had a medicine use corresponding to polypharmacy (prescription medicine and non-prescription/OTC), and 40.8% when herbal and traditional medicine, and dietary supplement were included. Mean number of medicine intake (all types of medicines and supplements) were 3.8±1.5. The odd ratios (ORs) of polypharmacy (medicine and supplements) increased with diabetes duration (<1–5 years OR = 1.66; 95%CI: 1.09–2.53 and >5 years OR = 1.74; 95%CI: 1.14–2.64 as compared to ≤1-year duration of diabetes), number of comorbidities (1–2 comorbidities: OR = 2.0; 95%CI: 1.18–3.42; ≥3 comorbidities: OR = 2.63;95%CI: 1.50–4.61 as compared to no comorbidities), and suffering from diabetes-related distress (OR = 1.49; 95%CI: 1.11–2.01) as compared to those without distress. Conclusions: In rural northern Vietnam, persons with longer duration of T2D, higher number of comorbidities and diabetes-related stress have higher odds of having a medicine use corresponding to polypharmacy. A high proportion of people with T2D supplement their prescription, non-prescription/OTC medicine with herbal and traditional medicine and dietary supplements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coptocheilus maunautim, new species, is described from Vietnam's Thua Thien-Hue Province. The closest relative of the new species is probably Coptocheilus maydelineae (Páll-Gergely, P.K. Nguyen & Y. Chen, 2019), which also has a "double suture", but differs in its much stronger shell sculpture. Coptocheilus Gould, 1862, is reinstated for this genus group. The widely used Schistoloma Kobelt, 1902, is an unnecessary replacement name and cannot be conserved. An updated checklist of the members of this genus is appended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maternal death is one of the highest causes of global mortality. Governments have long used regulation to improve maternal health but concurrent fiscal-decentralisation reforms can undermine clinical performance. This article focuses on public Vietnamese hospitals to explore how regulatory compliance is pursued in decentralised health facilities, since Vietnam has seen increasing autonomisation of public hospitals in the last decade while simultaneously experiencing marked reductions in the maternal mortality ratio. Our analysis suggests that autonomisation has allowed regional regulatory regimes to emerge and that regulatory compliance must compete with other priorities. Compliance can therefore be rethought as a negotiation having implications for how government and maternal health advocates persuade self-sufficient hospitals to take on wider health-system goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) have been found to contribute, predominantly, to increasing costs of COPD-a major public health issue. This study aimed to fill the gap in literature concerning costs of AECOPD in Vietnam, by examining the direct cost of AECOPD hospitalization and determining potentially associated factors. A cross-sectional study was conducted at the Respiratory Center of Bach Mai Hospital, Hanoi. A total of 57 participants were selected. Information regarding sociodemographic features, clinical characteristics, and hospitalization costs were collected. A multivariate generalized linear regression model was utilized to determine the factors associated with hospitalization costs. The mean total and daily hospitalization cost were 18.3 million VND (SD = 12.9) and 2.5 million VND (SD = 3.2), respectively. Medication cost accounted for 53.9% of hospitalization cost (from 44.0% in the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease Classification A (GOLD A) to 55.3% in GOLD C). Patients having GOLD D COPD (Coef. = 5.78; 95% CI = 0.73⁻10.83), higher age (Coef. = 0.37; 95% CI = 0.13⁻0.61), and higher duration of hospitalization (Coef. = 1.91; 95% CI = 1.28⁻2.53) had higher hospitalization costs ( p < 0.05). This study suggested that interventions to screen COPD patients as well as provide timely treatment should be conducted widely in the community in order to avoid any unnecessary hospitalization cost, consequently reducing the economic burden of COPD.