5,870 research outputs found
Prevalence of SARS-CoV antibody in all Hong Kong patient contacts.
No full textThe near absence of transmission (seroprevalence=0.19%) resulting in asymptomatic infection in this representative high-risk group of close contacts indicates that the prevailing SARS-CoV strains in Hong Kong almost always led to clinically apparent disease.published_or_final_versio
Epidemiology of acute primary angle-closure glaucoma in the Hong Kong Chinese population: prospective study.
No full textOBJECTIVES: To determine the incidence of acute primary angle-closure glaucoma in the Hong Kong Chinese population, and to identify risk factors for this condition. DESIGN: Prospective study. SETTING: University teaching hospital, Hong Kong. PARTICIPANTS: Patients with acute primary angle-closure glaucoma presenting between 1 March 1998 and 29 February 2000. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Demographic data, presenting symptoms and signs, temporal details of the presentation, and precipitating factors. The crude regional incidence was calculated according to the Hong Kong population census of 1991 and the age-specific incidence was calculated. RESULTS: Seventy-two cases (72 eyes of 72 patients) of acute primary angle-closure glaucoma were recruited. The crude incidence was 10.4 per 100,000 per year in the population aged 30 years and older. Patients at higher risk of attacks were those aged 70 years or older (age-specific incidence, 58.7 per 100,000 per year) and females, who had a relative risk of 3.8 compared with males (95% confidence interval, 1.7-8.4). Only four (5.6%) patients had a positive family history of acute primary angle-closure glaucoma. Seventeen (23.6%) patients were noted to have an upper respiratory tract infection before the attack, and 25 (34.7%) patients had taken antitussive agents. There was a statistically significant inverse correlation between the monthly attack rate and the monthly rate of influenza (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient = -0.388; P=0.031). CONCLUSION: There is a high incidence of acute primary angle-closure glaucoma among Chinese residents of Hong Kong, with elderly females at highest risk. A significant proportion of patients reported upper respiratory tract infection or the use of antitussive medication prior to attacks.published_or_final_versio
Intussusception trends in Hong Kong children
No full textOBJECTIVES: To assess trends in intussusception and to validate the coding in Hong Kong's computerised discharge information system. DESIGN: Case notes were reviewed for all children under the age of 5 years who had a discharge diagnosis indicating intussusception or a procedure indicating reduction of intussusception during the 6-year period 1 July 1997 through 30 June 2003. RESULTS: Intussusception rates for infants under 1 year of age (108/100,000) and under 5 years of age (38/100,000) were slightly higher than previous estimates (78-100/100,000 and 27-32/100,000, respectively) that used passive discharge data alone. CONCLUSIONS: Hong Kong's passive computer data systems could be used to monitor rates of intussusception after the introduction of new rotavirus vaccines, provided readmissions, inter-hospital transfers, and hospital follow-ups for the same episode are taken into account.published_or_final_versio
The prevalence and healthcare utilization of rare neurological diseases in Hong Kong: 2014-2018
No full textBackground: Rare neurological diseases (RND) constitute a large proportion of rare diseases (RD).
However, there has not been any study dedicated to the elucidation of prevalence and healthcare utilization pattern of RND and its subtypes. There is also a lack of understanding into the state of pharmacological research in RND.
Methods: A list of ICD-10 codes corresponding to RNDs was compiled with adaptation from the
Orphanet Classification of Rare Diseases, and classified into rare epilepsy, movementrelated, neurocutaneous, neuroimmune, neurometabolic and neurodegenerative, neuromuscular and other RNDs. Using the Clinical Data Analysis and Reporting System (CDARS), which holds public hospital healthcare records of Hong Kong in an anonymous manner, we calculated the prevalence and healthcare utilization of patients RNDs between 2014 and 2018. The list of RNDs was also used to look up pharmacological research related to RNDs within the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) between 2009-2018.
Results: The prevalence of RND in Hong Kong is 3.6 in 1000, without major difference between
paediatric and adult population. Patients with RNDs have frequent emergency department, inpatient and outpatient healthcare utilization, with average annual cost per patient estimated at HKD 175404 (USD 22488) excluding pharmacological costs. Different categories of RND also showed different patterns of healthcare utilization. On the other hand, there were only 677 RND-related pharmacological trials in the past decade, and no such trial was found for up to 78% of RNDs. Only 41 (6%) of the trials were conducted within Chinese speaking communities.
Discussion: This is the first comprehensive review on the prevalence, healthcare utilization, and state of pharmacological research in RNDs. It shows high healthcare utilization rate amongst patients with RND in the Emergency Department, inpatient and outpatient settings. It also shows a wide research gap in many of the RNDs, particularly within Chinese speaking communities. We call for better attention and tailored healthcare for these patients
SARS-CoV antibody prevalence in all Hong Kong patient contacts.
No full textA total of 1,068 asymptomatic close contacts of patients with severe acute respiratory (SARS) from the 2003 epidemic in Hong Kong were serologically tested, and 2 (0.19%) were positive for SARS coronavirus immunoglobulin G antibody. SARS rarely manifests as a subclinical infection, and at present, wild animal species are the only important natural reservoirs of the virus
Effect of influenza on cardiorespiratory and all-cause mortality in Hong Kong, Singapore and Guangzhou.
No full text1. Using a common modelling approach, mortality attributable to influenza was higher in the two subtropical cities Guangzhou and Hong Kong than in the tropical city Singapore. 2. The virus activity appeared more synchronised in subtropical cities, whereas seasonality of influenza tended to be less marked in the tropical city. 3. High temperature was associated with increased mortality after influenza infection in Hong Kong, whereas relative humidity was an effect modifier for influenza in Guangzhou. No effect modification was found for Singapore. 4. Seasonal and environmental factors probably play a more important role than socioeconomic factors in regulating seasonality and disease burden of influenza. Further studies are needed in identifying the mechanism behind the regulatory role of environmental factors.published_or_final_versio
A regenerative expert system approach for the maintenance of expert systems
No full textWhen the maintenance of expert systems incorporates not only knowledge bases but also inference engines, algorithms, and user interface modules, the maintenance of the expert systems needs to adopt software maintenance methodologies such as software reuse. We have developed a regenerative expert system approach (REGENESYS) that can modify the rules and program modules of a standard expert system according to the changed specification. We have also proposed a procedure for the approach and illustrated it with the scheduling expert systems for shipbuilding. By adopting the regenerative expert system approach, we can reduce the burden of developing systems for rare occurrences and maintain the capability of modular modification. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved
Separation of Ethyl-(R)-4-chloro-3-hydroxybutyrate from racemic mixture by using bulk liquid membrane
No full textRobust digital position control algorithm of PMSM using simple neural network compensator
No full textA very simple control approach using a neural network for the robust position control of a permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) is presented. The linear quadratic controller plus feedforward neural network compensator is employed to obtain the robust PMSM system approximately linearized using a field-orientation method for an AC servo. The neural network is trained in on-line phases and a feedforward recall and error back-propagation training compose this neural network. Since the total number of nodes is only eight, this system is realized easily by the general microprocessor. During normal operation, the input-output response is sampled and the weighting value is trained multi-times by an error back-propagation method at each sample period to accommodate the possible variations in the parameters or load torque. The state space analysis is also performed to obtain the state feedback gains systematically. In addition, the robustness is also obtained without affecting overall system response. A floating-point digital signal processor DS1102 board (TMS320C31) realizes this method. The basic DSP software is used to write C-program, which is compiled by using ANSI-C style function prototypes
An ELISA for antibodies against infectious bronchitis virus using an S1 spike polypeptide
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