Đà Nẵng Hospital (Vietnamese: Bệnh viện Đà Nẵng) is the largest hospital in the city of Đà Nẵng, Vietnam. It was established prior to 1945 as the Hôpital de Danang.
Purpose: To evaluate inter-institutional variability in rectal cancer radiotherapy planning across four Vietnamese centers by comparing dosimetric characteristics and radiobiological outcomes, including tumor control probability (TCP) and normal tissue complication probability (NTCP). Materials and methods: A total of 54 treatment plans were retrospectively collected from Shingmark Hospital, Lam Dong General Hospital, Da Nang Oncology Hospital, and Bai Chay Hospital. Plans were generated according to each institution's routine clinical practice using either 50 Gy in 25 fractions or 50.4 Gy in 28 fractions. Centralized analysis included extraction of target volume metrics, dose-volume histograms, and radiobiological modeling of TCP and NTCP for selected organs at risk. Inter-institutional comparisons were descriptive due to unequal case distribution. Subgroup analyses by sex and age were also performed. Results: PTV volumes showed substantial overlap across centers, with no systematic differences in target size. TCP values were narrowly distributed (approximately 0.73 - 0.75) and demonstrated no meaningful inter-institutional variation. Similarly, NTCP estimates for the bladder, bowel, and femoral heads were consistent among centers, indicating comparable organ-sparing strategies despite differences in planning systems and case volume. Subgroup analyses revealed slightly larger PTVs in male patients but no notable differences in TCP or NTCP by sex or age group. Conclusion: This first multi-center evaluation of rectal cancer radiotherapy planning in Vietnam demonstrates a high degree of consistency in dosimetric and radiobiological outcomes across institutions. These findings indicate that routine planning practices yield comparable predicted tumor control and normal tissue risk, serving as an encouraging baseline assessment for future national standardization efforts.
Introduction: Endovascular Thrombectomy (EVT) has demonstrated efficacy and safety in patients with large infarct cores (LIC). However, mortality and severe disability remain high, particularly among patients with cerebral edema. We aimed to assess EVT's efficacy on functional outcomes and cerebral edema in patients with unrestricted large core strokes within 24 hours using non-contrast CT (NCCT). Methods: We conducted a prospective observational cohort study in Vietnam, from October 2023 to May 2025, enrolling patients with large-vessel occlusion in the anterior circulation, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score ≥ 6, Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Score (ASPECTS) < 6 at baseline, and admission within 24 hours of onset. An ambulatory outcome was defined as a modified Rankin Scale of 0-3 at 90 days. Safety outcomes were determined by death at 90 days, symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH) according to SITS-MOST criteria, and cerebral edema was defined as mass effect with a maximum midline shift ≥ 5 mm on follow-up MRI or NCCT performed at 24 hours. We used inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) combined with multivariable adjustment for potential confounders, including age, sex, baseline ASPECTS, NIHSS score, and time from onset to admission. Results: We analyzed 185 patients (EVT group: 106; medical-care group: 79). Median age was 67 years (IQR 60-77), 47% were females. At admission, the median NIHSS was 18 (IQR 15-21), and ASPECTS was 3 (IQR 2-4). In the IPTW-adjusted data set, EVT was associated with a higher rate of ambulatory outcome versus medical care (48.1% vs 20.3%; IPTW-adjusted odds ratio (IPTW-aOR) 2.30, 95% CI 1.41–3.74; p<0.001) and lower 90-day mortality (30.2% vs 50.6%; IPTW-aOR 0.50, 95% CI 0.31–0.80; p=0.004). The sICH rate was numerically higher with EVT (11.3% vs 10.1%; IPTW-aOR 1.64, 95% CI 0.87–3.09; p=0.125) but not significant. Cerebral edema with mass effect was less frequent after EVT (33% vs 50.6%; IPTW-aOR 0.51, 95% CI 0.31–0.83, p=0.006) and was independently associated with poor outcome at 90 days (IPTW-aOR 3.75, 95% CI 2.04–6.89, p<0.001). Conclusion: This study shows EVT improved functional outcomes and survival while reducing cerebral edema compared with medical care. Cerebral edema with mass effect was an independent predictor of poor outcome, suggesting that part of EVT’s benefit may be mediated through the mitigation of cerebral edema. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings.
Background Esophageal variceal bleeding (EVB) is a serious complication of cirrhosis and a major cause of upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage, carrying substantial risks of mortality and treatment failure. Prognostic scores are essential for guiding management. This study evaluated and compared the predictive accuracy of the ABC and MAP(ASH) scores with established models in cirrhotic patients with EVB. Methods We retrospectively analyzed 278 cirrhotic patients admitted for EVB at Da Nang Hospital, Vietnam, between January 2022 and January 2025 who underwent endoscopic variceal ligation. Data were collected for ABC, MAP(ASH), AIMS65, and Glasgow-Blatchford scores. Primary outcomes were in-hospital mortality and 5-day treatment failure. Predictive performance was assessed using AUROCs and statistical comparisons. Results The ABC score achieved the highest AUROC for predicting in-hospital mortality (0.88), significantly surpassing the MAP(ASH), GBS, and AIMS65 scores (p < 0.001 for all pairwise comparisons). A similar trend was observed for predicting 5-day treatment failure, where the ABC score again demonstrated the highest AUROC (0.79), outperforming both the GBS and AIMS65 scores; however, it showed comparable performance to MAP(ASH) (p = 0.19). In addition, the ABC score's risk stratification (low, medium, and high) accurately differentiated patients with varying mortality and treatment failure rates. Conclusion The ABC score is a highly effective and reliable tool for predicting in-hospital mortality and early treatment failure in cirrhotic patients with EVB. While the MAP(ASH) score remains valuable for predicting early treatment failure, the ABC score offers superior overall prognostic accuracy. These findings suggest that the ABC score can guide clinical decisions, particularly in resource-limited settings.
Introduction: ChatGPT, a large language model, has considerable potential in higher education. However, its academic use and associated factors among Vietnamese postgraduate healthcare students remain underexplored. This study aimed to examine the academic use of ChatGPT and identify factors associated with its use. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 301 postgraduate students at a public healthcare university in Central Vietnam between August and December 2024. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire assessing demographic characteristics, ChatGPT-related knowledge, attitudes, and academic use. Descriptive statistics and non-parametric analyses, including point-biserial and Spearman’s rank-order correlations, were performed. Results: The mean academic use score was 4.32 out of 10 (SD = 4.00). More than half of participants reported using ChatGPT to clarify unclear content (57.5%) and to develop writing outlines (53.2%). Academic use was positively correlated with ChatGPT knowledge (r = 0.373, p < 0.001) and with attitudes toward technology and social influence (r = 0.282, p < 0.001), but was not associated with gender, age, or working position. Conclusion: Vietnamese postgraduate healthcare students demonstrated moderate academic use of ChatGPT. Greater knowledge and more favourable attitudes toward technology and social influence were associated with higher levels of use. Structured training and clear institutional guidance may therefore support more effective and responsible integration of ChatGPT in postgraduate education.
