Publications by authors named "Emily C W Hung"
Article Synopsis
- Effective COVID-19 containment measures, including physical distancing and hygiene practices, remain crucial despite the availability of vaccines, with varying compliance levels across Asian countries influenced by awareness and motivation in the early pandemic phase.
- The study aimed to analyze how knowledge and attitudes correlate with compliance to these measures in 14 regions through electronic surveys from May to June 2020.
- Results showed that Southeast Asian participants were more likely to commit to physical distancing, with independent factors for high compliance including safe distancing practices, mask-wearing, preferred news sources, and psychological well-being.
Importance: Knowledge and attitude influence compliance and individuals' practices. The risk and protective factors associated with high compliance to these preventive measures are critical to enhancing pandemic preparedness.
Objective: This survey aims to assess differences in mental health, knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of preventive measures for COVID-19 amongst healthcare professionals (HCP) and non-healthcare professionals.
Background And Aim: Gastrointestinal manifestations of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic may mimic irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and social distancing measures may affect IBS patients negatively. We aimed to study the impact of COVID-19 on respondents with self-reported IBS.
Methods: We conducted an anonymized survey from May to June 2020 in 33 countries.
Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is prevalent in Southeast Asia. Over the last decade, plasma Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA has been developed as a tumor marker for NPC. In this study, the authors investigated whether plasma EBV DNA analysis is useful for NPC surveillance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Plasma DNA is predominantly hematopoietic in origin. The size difference between maternal- and fetal-derived DNA in maternal plasma prompted us to investigate whether there was any discrepancy in molecular size between hematopoietically and nonhematopoietically derived DNA in plasma.
Methods: Plasma DNA samples from 6 hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients and 1 liver transplant recipient were analyzed by massively parallel paired-end sequencing.
Serum levels of heavy metals in childhood eczema and skin diseases: friends or foes.
Pediatr Allergy Immunol
August 2010
The incidence of eczema has been increasing in developed countries. Environmental and hygiene factors have been incriminated. Although air and food pollution with heavy metals have been considered as possible culprits, these factors have never been investigated in Hong Kong.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The term "transrenal DNA" was coined in 2000 to signify that DNA in urine may come from the passage of plasma DNA through the kidney barrier. Although DNA in the urine has the potential to provide a completely noninvasive source of nucleic acids for molecular diagnosis, its existence remains controversial.
Methods: We obtained blood and urine samples from 22 hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) recipients and used fluorescence in situ hybridization, PCR for short tandem repeats, mass spectrometry, quantitative PCR, and immunofluorescence detection to study donor-derived DNA in the urine.
Article Synopsis
- The study explores the presence of placental microRNAs (miRNAs) in maternal plasma, proposing they could serve as noninvasive markers for prenatal diagnosis.
- To identify potential miRNAs, researchers compared concentrations in placentas to those in maternal blood cells, finding 17 miRNAs significantly enriched in the placenta.
- Among these, miR-141 was particularly notable for its stability and increasing levels during pregnancy, indicating its potential as a reliable biomarker for monitoring pregnancy.
Objective: Live-attenuated varicella vaccine is effective and safe in immunocompetent children. In this study, we assess the immunogenicity and adverse events following varicella vaccination in immunosuppressed cancer children.
Methods: Varicella-zoster virus (VZV)-seronegative cancer children received two doses of live-attenuated VZV vaccine (Varilrix) in a span of 3 months.
Background: The availability of an early diagnostic tool for severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) would have major public health implications. We investigated whether the SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV) can be detected in serum and plasma samples during the early stages of SARS and studied the potential prognostic implications of such an approach.
Methods: We developed two real-time quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) assays, one for the polymerase and the other for the nucleocapsid region of the virus genome, for measuring the concentration of SARS-CoV RNA in serum/plasma samples from SARS patients.