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Moshe Fridman,1 Mariann E Lucas,2 Yurek Paprocki,3 Tam Dang-Tan,4 Neeraj N Iyer5 1Biostatistics, AMF Consulting, Los Angeles, CA, USA; 2Information Science, Scientific Analytics, Novo Nordisk Inc, Plainsboro Township, NJ, USA; 3Medical Affairs, Novo Nordisk Inc, Plainsboro Township, NJ, USA; 4Medical Affairs, Novo Nordisk Inc, Plainsboro Township, NJ, USA; 5HEOR Strategy & Evidence Generation - Diabetes, Novo Nordisk Inc, Plainsboro Township, NJ, USACorrespondence: Neeraj N IyerNovo Nordisk, Inc, 800 Scudders Mill Road, PlainsboroTownship, NJ 08536, USATel +1 609 578 8157Email nriy@novonordisk.comObjective: Weight reduction is a key component of diabetes management in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), yet the benefits of weight loss in T2DM patients have been difficult to quantify. We examined the medical literature regarding the relationships between weight change and 1) glycemic control and 2) cost and resource use.Methods: Systematic searches were conducted in the electronic databases Embase, MEDLINE, and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews to identify publications regarding the impact of weight change on T2DM outcomes from 2007 onward. Identified publications were screened for relevance against predefined eligibility criteria, and methodological approaches and results were extracted. Evidence for the impact of weight change on outcomes was evaluated and used to identify strengths, limitations, and gaps in the current literature.Results: The number of studies meeting eligibility criteria for each outcome was: glycemic control (n=38) and cost and resource use (n=11). The relationship between weight change and glycemic control was dependent on the interplay of multiple factors, eg, the weight loss interventions employed, the antidiabetic medication classes used, the time horizon, and baseline BMI and glycemic control. With respect to cost and resource use, the review indicated that savings were associated with weight loss, and increased costs were associated with weight gain.Conclusion: Studies regarding weight change in T2DM patients demonstrated varying effects on glycemic control and a positive association with costs and resource use, where weight loss was associated with decreased costs and resource use. Future studies may be able to clarify these relationships.Keywords: type 2 diabetes, overweight/therapy, obesity/therapy, weight loss, cost, resource utilization, economics

The ferromagnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles with the average particle size of about 10 nm were used to adsorb chromium (VI) in aqueous solution. The equilibrium of Cr(VI) adsorption can be achieved at the pH value of 2.5, in the contact time of 120 minutes. The mechanisms of Cr(VI) adsorption were evaluated by 4 isothermal adsorption models Langmuir, Freundlich, Redlich-Peterson, and Temkin. The results showed that all four models are satisfied; especially, Redlich-Peterson is the most suitable model to describe the adsorption kinetic of Cr(VI) on ferromagnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles.

Responses of Vietnamese undergraduate students majoring in English to the integration of a Moodle site during an upper intermediate macro-skill course highlight differences in learner autonomy and expectations. Students' general attitudes towards and participation in this online Web 2.0 environment provide the basis for the research reported in this paper. Qualitative data from individual interviews ranged from neutral to very positive. The data also identified three patterns of online participation: task-oriented, content-oriented, and community-oriented. These patterns reflect a transition in the local students' learning expectations and behaviors towards controlling their learning processes and socialising activities in their formal learning. The paper concludes with a number of pedagogical suggestions for the process of technology integration in education in the local context. These are aimed at better engagement of students in the process of personalising online learning environments to suit their needs.

There have been a number of studies on the effects of formative assessment on Learning Management System on EFL writing achievement. Nevertheless, in the context of Vietnam, little research has been done on education technology that enhances online formative assessment in teaching writing. In an attempt to further the previous research nationwide and worldwide, this study examined the impacts of formative assessment on students’ writing achievement in a writing course of Learning Management System Schoology. A quasi-experimental design was carried out among two groups of fifty undergraduate Vietnamese students over a fifteen-week writing course using the main activity named online discussion board. The data analysis from the writing test scores suggested that there was statistically significant difference between treatment group and control group of participants. It is recommended that teachers should employ online formative assessment in teaching writing to help improve writing achievement among EFL learners in Vietnam and similar contexts.

Dhvani Shah,1 Nancy A Risebrough,2 Johnna Perdrizet,1 Neeraj N Iyer,3 Cory Gamble,4 Tam Dang-Tan3 1ICON, Commercialisation and Outcomes, Health Economics, New York, NY, USA; 2ICON, Commercialisation and Outcomes, Health Economics, Toronto, ON, Canada; 3HEOR & Data Analytics, Novo Nordisk Inc, Plainsboro, NJ, USA; 4Medical and Scientific Affairs, Novo Nordisk, Plainsboro, NJ, USA Background: The Liraglutide Effect and Action in Diabetes: Evaluation of Cardiovascular Outcomes Results (LEADER) clinical trial demonstrated that liraglutide added to standard-of-care (SoC) therapy for type 2 diabetes (T2D) with established cardiovascular disease (CVD) or elevated cardiovascular (CV) risk was associated with lower rates of death from CVD, nonfatal myocardial infarction (MI), or nonfatal stroke than SoC alone.Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the cost-effectiveness (CE) and budget impact of liraglutide vs SoC in T2D patients with established CVD or elevated CV risk, over a lifetime horizon from a US managed care perspective.Methods: A cohort state-transition model (costs and benefits discounted at 3% per year) was used to predict diabetes-related complications and death (CV and all-cause). Events, treatment effects, and discontinuation rates were from LEADER trial; utility and cost data (US$, 2017) were from literature. Sensitivity analysis explored the impact of uncertainty on results. Additionally, a budget impact analysis was conducted to evaluate the financial impact of liraglutide use in this population, with displacement from dulaglutide, assuming a health care plan with 1 million members.Results: Liraglutide patients experienced 6.3% fewer events, had event-related cost-savings of $15,182, gained additional life-years of 0.67 and quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) of 0.57, and had additional total costs ($60,928) vs SoC. Liraglutide was cost-effective with an incremental CE ratio of $106,749/QALY which was below the willingness-to-pay threshold of $150,000/QALY accepted by the Institute of Clinical and Economic Research. Liraglutide was cost-effective across all sensitivity analyses, except when the hazard ratio for all-cause mortality varied. The budget impact was neutral, with a per-plan-per-year and per-member-per-month cost-savings of $266,334 and $0.02, respectively.Conclusion: From a US-managed care perspective, for T2D patients with established CVD or elevated CV risk, liraglutide is a cost-effective and a budget neutral treatment option for health care plans. Keywords: liraglutide, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, cost-effectiveness, budget impact

After several international outbreaks of infectious diseases, including severe acute respiratory syndrome in 2003, all World Health Organization (WHO) Member States, including Vietnam, agreed to comply with the revised International [...]