Publications by authors named "Fung N"

Background And Objective: Asthma-COPD overlap (ACO) is characterized by patients exhibiting features of both asthma and COPD. Currently, there is no specific treatment for ACO. This study aimed to investigate the therapeutic potential of targeting CD131, a shared receptor subunit for IL-3, IL-5 and GM-CSF, in ACO development and in preventing acute viral exacerbations.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Sinonasal mucosal melanoma has poor survival despite multimodality treatment. While the impact of immunotherapy (IT) on metastatic cutaneous melanoma is well-defined, there are relatively little data on sinonasal mucosal melanoma.

Objective: We sought to define immunotherapy outcomes in patients with sinonasal mucosal melanoma.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The effectiveness of loss-framed versus gain-framed messages in attracting attention and influencing purchase intention among younger and older adults remains unclear. We tracked the eye movements of 92 younger (18-39 years) and 83 older adults (60-82 years) while they viewed 32 advertisements and reported their purchase intentions for each advertised product. The results showed that loss-framed (vs.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: The utility of pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) for high-grade traumatic injuries remains unclear and data surrounding its use are limited. We hypothesized that PD does not result in improved outcomes when compared with non-PD surgical management of grade IV-V pancreaticoduodenal injuries.

Methods: This is a retrospective, multicenter analysis from 35 level 1 trauma centers from January 2010 to December 2020.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Cardiogenic shock (CS) is a complex, life-threatening condition that requires timely care of patients. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the characteristics and outcomes of patients transferred to a cardiac intensive-care unit from outside hospitals, compared to those of patients admitted directly to a CS centre.

Methods: Patients admitted with CS (January 1, 2014-December 31, 2019) were analyzed.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • - The study investigates the role of pathological dural invasion (pathDI) as a predictor for neck metastases and recurrence in patients with olfactory neuroblastoma (ONB), using data from a multicenter database of ONB cases collected between 2005 and 2021.
  • - Among the 258 patients reviewed, those with pathDI had a significantly lower 10-year neck recurrence-free survival (61.8%) compared to those without it (85.7%), indicating a strong negative impact of pathDI on prognosis.
  • - The analysis revealed that pathDI is a significant predictor of neck recurrence and recurrence at other sites, suggesting that future research could lead to changes in treatment strategies for patients with pathDI. *
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Indigenous populations have remained resilient in maintaining their unique culture and values, despite facing centuries of colonial oppression. With many discriminatory policies continuing to disempower Indigenous peoples, First Nations communities have been reported to experience a higher level of cardiovascular disease (CVD)-related mortality, compared to that in the general population. Many of the risk factors contributing to the burden of CVD have been attributed to the impact of colonization and the ongoing dismissal of Indigenous knowledge.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a major vision-threatening disease among the working-age population worldwide. Present therapeutic strategies such as intravitreal injection of anti-VEGF and laser photocoagulation mainly target proliferative DR. However, there is a need for early effective management in patients with early stage of DR before its progression into the more severe sight-threatening proliferative stage.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Cardiogenic shock (CS) is associated with high in-hospital mortality. Objective assessment of its severity and prognosis is paramount for timely therapeutic interventions. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of the shock index (SI) and its variants as prognostic indicators for in-hospital mortality.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Patients with duodenal leaks (DL) who received enteral nutrition (EN) experienced shorter time to leak closure, fewer infectious complications, and reduced hospital stays compared to those receiving parenteral nutrition (PN) or a combination of both.
  • The study analyzed data from 113 patients across 35 trauma centers, highlighting that EN patients had significantly fewer days without oral intake and less severe complications.
  • The findings suggest that EN is a preferable nutritional strategy for DL patients, as it promotes quicker recovery and fewer hospital-related issues.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: There are significant clinical, policy and societal concerns about the impact on young people (YP), from admission to psychiatric wards far from home. However, research evidence is scarce.

Aims: To investigate the impact of at-distance admissions to general adolescent units, from the perspectives of YP, parents/carers and healthcare professionals (HCPs) including service commissioners, to inform clinical practice, service development and policy.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Longitudinal studies have identified childhood asthma as a risk factor for obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma-COPD overlap (ACO) where persistent airflow limitation can develop more aggressively. However, a causal link between childhood asthma and COPD/ACO remains to be established. Our study aimed to model the natural history of childhood asthma and COPD and to investigate the cellular/molecular mechanisms that drive disease progression.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

We present an overview of the Conference on Transformative Opportunities for Modeling in Neurorehabilitation held in March 2023. It was supported by the Disability and Rehabilitation Engineering (DARE) program from the National Science Foundation's Engineering Biology and Health Cluster. The conference brought together experts and trainees from around the world to discuss critical questions, challenges, and opportunities at the intersection of computational modeling and neurorehabilitation to understand, optimize, and improve clinical translation of neurorehabilitation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: With modern treatment paradigms, olfactory neuroblastoma (ONB) has favorable overall survival (OS); however, the incidence of recurrence remains high. The primary aims of this study were to delineate the prognosis of recurrence of ONB and explore how recurrence subsites are associated with OS, disease-specific survival (DSS), and further recurrence.

Methods: A retrospective chart review of ONB cases from nine academic centers between 2005 and 2021 was completed.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Clozapine is an antipsychotic drug with unique efficacy, and it is the only recommended treatment for treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS: failure to respond to at least two different antipsychotics). However, clozapine is also associated with a range of adverse effects which restrict its use, including blood dyscrasias, for which haematological monitoring is required. As treatment resistance is recognised earlier in the illness, the question of whether clozapine should be prescribed in children and young people is increasingly important.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • - The study focused on patients with cardiogenic shock (CS) and evaluated the impact of pulmonary artery catheters (PACs) on their clinical outcomes, specifically in-hospital mortality rates and use of advanced therapies.
  • - Analysis of 1,043 patients revealed that those receiving PACs had a lower in-hospital mortality rate (29.3% vs 36.2%) and were more likely to receive advanced heart failure treatments, such as mechanical circulation support.
  • - The findings suggest that PACs are beneficial in managing CS, particularly for patients in more severe stages (SCAI D and E), though their use was also linked to longer stays in intensive care and hospitals.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Ocular tuberculosis (TB) affects 1-2% of patients with TB, with TB uveitis being the most common. This series aims to look at different manifestations of tuberculosis associated uveitis and the different tests used to make a presumptive or definitive diagnosis.

Methods: Patients diagnosed with TB related uveitis in Hong Kong SAR between 2017 and 2020 were reviewed.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: To evaluate whether subcategorization of perineural invasion (PNI) improves the prognostic resolution of the American Joint Committee on Cancer, Eighth Edition (AJCC8) staging system in oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OCSCC).

Methods: OCSCC tumor specimens from patients seen at a tertiary care institution who underwent primary surgical resection between January 2019 and June 2021 were sorted into four PNI categories: negative, intratumoral, peripheral, and extratumoral. The prognostic effect of these PNI categories were assessed through Kaplan-Meier, Cox regression, and log-rank testing using recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) as primary and secondary outcomes respectively.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This study retrospectively evaluates clinical outcomes of dose escalation to involved nodes using volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) with simultaneous integrated boost (SIB) for node-positive locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) at a single institution. Consecutive patients with node-positive LACC (FIGO IIIC1-IVA) who received definitive chemoradiotherapy by VMAT 45 Gy in 25 fractions with SIB to 55-57.5 Gy, followed by magnetic resonance image-guided adaptive brachytherapy (IGABT) between 2018 and 2022 were identified.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study examines how older adults' perception of facial trustworthiness affects their buying decisions compared to younger adults.
  • Research involved tracking the eye movements of 92 younger and 83 older adults as they viewed product advertisements, revealing that both groups preferred credible products, but older adults were less able to distinguish between credible and non-credible information when faces appeared more trustworthy.
  • The findings indicate that while trustworthiness increases purchasing intentions for both age groups, it significantly distracts older adults from assessing content credibility, potentially contributing to their increased risk of fraud.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • This study investigates the effects of milrinone versus dobutamine in patients with acute decompensated heart failure and cardiogenic shock, highlighting milrinone's potential benefits.
  • Patients treated with milrinone had better clinical characteristics, lower mortality rates at 30 days, and improved heart function compared to those receiving dobutamine.
  • The findings suggest that milrinone may be a more effective treatment option for this patient group and indicate the need for future research to confirm these results.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Understanding factors associated with SARS-CoV-2 exposure risk in the hospital setting may help improve infection control measures for prevention.

Aim: To monitor SARS-CoV-2 exposure risk among healthcare workers and to identify risk factors associated with SARS-CoV-2 detection.

Methods: Surface and air samples were collected longitudinally over 14 months spanning 2020-2022 at the Emergency Department (ED) of a teaching hospital in Hong Kong.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • * Among 196 patients studied, 74.5% experienced recurrence, with the most common type being isolated distant recurrence (42.8%).
  • * Findings indicate high recurrence rates and poor survival for SNMM; primary neck treatment showed no benefit, while immunotherapy improved 12-month post-recurrence survival for distant recurrence cases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

About 70% of breast cancer patients are oestrogen receptor-positive (ER +ve). Adjuvant endocrine therapy using tamoxifen (TAM) is an effective approach for preventing local recurrence and metastasis. However, around half of the patients will eventually develop resistance.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF