Is four a deadly number for the Chinese?

Background: The numbers 4, 14 and 24 are associated with death for Cantonese-speaking Chinese people, as the words for these numbers sound like the words for "death", "must die" and "easy to die", respectively. A previous study in the United States investigating psychological stress engendered by fear of the number 4 found more cardiac deaths in Chinese and Japanese people, compared with white Americans, on the 4th day of the month.

Objective: To determine whether more cardiac deaths occur in Hong Kong Chinese people on the days of the month with "deathly connotations" (4, 14 and 24).