Background&Aims Recent clinical trials of direct-acting-antiviral agents (DAAs) against hepatitis C virus (HCV) achieved >90% sustained-virological response (SVR) rates, suggesting that cure often took place before the end of treatment (EOT). We sought to evaluate retrospectively whether early response kinetics can provide the basis to individualize therapy to achieve optimal results while reducing duration and cost. Methods 58 chronic-HCV patients were treated with 12-week sofosbuvir+simeprevir(n=19), sofosbuvir+daclatasvir(n=19), or sofosbuvir+ledipasvir in three French referral centers. HCV was measured at baseline, day 2, every other week, EOT and 12 weeks post EOT. Mathematical modeling was used to predict the time to cure,i.e,<1 virus copy in the entire extracellular-body fluid. Results All but one patient who relapsed achieved SVR. Mean age was 60±11 years, 53% were male, 86% HCV genotype-1, 9% HIV coinfected, 43% advanced fibrosis (F3), and 57% had cirrhosis. At weeks 2, 4 and 6, 48%, 88% and 100% of patients had HCV<15 IU/ml, with 27%, 74% and 91% of observations having target-not-detected, respectively. Modeling results predicted that 32(43%), 16(23%), 7(13%), 5(9%) and 3(5%) subjects were predicted to reach cure within 6, 8, 10, 12 and 13 weeks of therapy, respectively. The modeling suggested that the patient who relapsed would have benefitted from an additional week of sofosbuvir+ledipasvir. Adjusting duration of treatment according to the modeling predicts reduced medication costs of 43%-45% and 17%-30% in subjects who had HCV<15 IU/ml at weeks 2 and 4, respectively. Conclusions The use of early viral-kinetic analysis has the potential to individualize duration of DAA therapy with a projected average cost-saving of 16%-20% per 100-treated persons.

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In an effort to better understand the learning potential of a tangible interface, we conducted a comparison study between a tangible and a traditional graphical user interface for teaching preschoolers (In Portugal, children enter preschool at the age of three and they attend it till entering school, normally at the age of six) about good oral hygiene. The study was carried with two groups of children aged 4 to 5 years. Questionnaires to parents, children's drawings, and interviews were used for data collection and analysis and revealed important indicators about children's change of attitude, involvement, and preferences for the interfaces. The questionnaires showed a remarkable change of attitude toward tooth brushing in the children that interacted with the tangible interface; particularly children's motivation increased significantly. Children's drawings were used to assess their degree of involvement with the interfaces. The drawings from the children that interacted with the tangible interface were very complete and detailed suggesting that the children felt actively involved with the experience. The results suggest that the tangible interface was capable of promoting a stronger and long-lasting involvement having a greater potential to engage children, therefore potentially promoting learning. Evaluation through drawing seems to be a promising method to work with preliterate children; however, it is advisable to use it together with other methods.

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Purpose -This paper aims to identify the key factors in children's choice of clothing from six to 11-year-olds. Design/ methodology/ approach -This exploratory study was developed through a questionnaire answered by 313 children, between the ages of six and 11, from four different schools in Porto (Portugal), covering the private/ state and the rural/urban dimensions. The Logit and Probit binary choice models have been chosen to evaluate the factors that influence children's choice of clothing (proxy), based on a mix constituted by "brand name, functionality and fashion". Findings -The results showed that choice is positively related to age, sex, environment, parents' income, self-esteem, susceptibility to interpersonal influence and utilitarian value (functional value). On the contrary, susceptibility to reference group influence, materialism (materialistic attitudes), ostentatious value and involvement are negatively related to choice.Research limitations/implications -The results of the research are limited by the specific sample chosen for this purpose. It is very difficult to generalize the results taking into account all children. The translation and adaptation of the original scales to the case of children and to the Portuguese context may have caused some deviation. The determination of choice was not done directly, as it resulted from a proxy related to the choice of clothing. Practical implications -Retailers and manufacturers of children's clothing can benefit from the findings of this study. The model developed was applied to the children's choice of clothing. However, it may be tested for a wider universe and applied to other product types. Originality/value -This study contributes to the literature by studying key factors that affect children's choice of clothing. Based on these results, indications for future research are pointed out: a change in the mix of clothing products available and a characterization of choice types through free, conditional, ordered and multinomial models.