Publications by authors named "Wai Leung"
Clinical guidelines typically endorse conventional therapies such as 5-aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA) as the mainstay of ulcerative colitis management. However, the degree of adoption and application of guideline recommendations by physicians within Asia remains unclear. This study aims to understand the prescribing patterns of 5-ASA and implementation of current guideline recommendations across Asian clinical practice.
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- The study investigates the link between short-term exposure to air pollutants and emergency visits for upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB) in Hong Kong from 2017 to 2022.
- Exposure to high levels of particulate matter (PM) and nitrogen monoxide (NO) significantly increases the risk of UGIB, particularly after a few days of exposure and more so in males and the elderly.
- The research highlights that colder seasons amplify the risk, with NO exposure having a greater attributed burden compared to PM despite both being harmful.
The lack of clear definition and classification for "moderate ulcerative colitis (UC)" creates ambiguity regarding the suitability of step-up versus top-down treatment approaches. In this paper, experts address crucial gaps in assessing and managing moderate UC. The Asia-Pacific, Middle East, and Africa Inflammatory Bowel Disease Coalition comprised 24 experts who convened to share, discuss and vote electronically on management recommendations for moderate UC.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Aims: Since the onset of the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, there has been a significant opportunity to leverage virtual platforms for communication and dissemination of knowledge. An online survey was conducted to examine the viewpoints of World Gastroenterology Organization (WGO) leaders concerning the necessity, primary priority areas, and implementation strategies for a virtual global gastroenterology educational program.
Methods: We conducted a survey of leaders of WGO member societies to assess their opinions on creating opportunities for global education using virtual platforms, identifying practical implementation steps and priority educational areas.
Introduction: There are limited epidemiological studies on eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) in Asia. We studied the temporal trend of EoE in Asia, the presenting symptoms, and association with atopic diseases.
Methods: Literature search on PubMed, Embase, MEDLINE, Scopus, and Web of Science was performed to retrieve studies published between 1980 and 2023 that reported the prevalence or incidence of EoE in Asia.
Background: Optimal glycaemic control has well-established health benefits in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). It is uncertain whether optimal glycaemic control can benefit liver-related outcomes.
Aims: To examine the association of optimal glycaemic control with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and liver-related mortality.
Article Synopsis
- Scientists in Southern China studied three different treatments for a stomach infection called Helicobacter pylori (HP) in people who had never been treated before.
- They compared the effectiveness of two vonoprazan therapies and one bismuth therapy over 14 days.
- Both vonoprazan treatments worked almost as well as bismuth therapy, but with fewer side effects.
Introduction: Structural and functional abnormalities in the cortical-striatal network (CSN) are hypothesised to play a key role in the pathogenesis of neurological disease-associated fatigue. Some small-scale functional MRI (fMRI) studies have suggested that poststroke fatigue (PSF) is related to focal functional connectivity (FC) changes. To date, there has been no published large-scale fMRI study on PSF.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Enzalutamide and abiraterone may differ in their immunomodulatory effects, and the prednisone coadministered with abiraterone can be immunosuppressive. This study aimed to compare the risk of different types of infection in patients with prostate cancer receiving enzalutamide or abiraterone in combination with androgen deprivation therapy.
Methods: Patients with prostate cancer receiving enzalutamide or abiraterone in addition to androgen deprivation therapy in Hong Kong between December 1999 to March 2021 were identified in this retrospective cohort study and followed up until September 2021, death, or crossover.
Aims: Women with atrial fibrillation (AF) are under-represented in randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs). This systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs and observational studies examined sex-specific outcomes of DOACs in AF.
Methods: PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and Cochrane Library were searched from January 2008 to November 2022.
Real-world efficacy of second-line therapies for Helicobacter pylori: a population-based study.
J Antimicrob Chemother
September 2024
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates the effectiveness of second-line therapies for Helicobacter pylori after initial treatment failure, focusing on real-world data from Hong Kong between 2003 and 2018.
- Out of 7591 patients, bismuth quadruple therapy showed the highest success rate (85.6%), while clarithromycin triple therapy was the least effective (63.5%), despite still being commonly prescribed.
- Factors such as age, treatment duration, and previous therapies influenced the success rates, with an overall second-line therapy success rate of 73.6%.
Article Synopsis
- The study evaluates the long-term effectiveness of an oral health educational program (OHEP) for healthcare providers in long-term care facilities, measuring changes in their knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) at 3 and 6 months after the program.
- Results showed that participants in the intervention group maintained a higher level of knowledge about oral care compared to the control group, which experienced a decline in knowledge over the same period.
- The findings suggest that while the OHEP improves knowledge and attitudes towards oral health care, ongoing training and support are essential to sustain these improvements in practice.
Early fluctuations in blood glucose levels increased susceptibility to macrophage dysfunction. However, the underlying pathological mechanisms linking glucose variations and macrophage dysregulation remains elusive. In current study, we established an animal model of transient intermittent hyperglycaemia (TIH) to simulate early fluctuations in blood glucose levels.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground & Aims: We investigated the benefit-risk profile of aspirin on mortality reduction from chemoprevention of gastrointestinal (GI) cancer vs excess mortality from bleeding among Helicobacter pylori-eradicated patients, and its interaction with proton pump inhibitors (PPIs).
Methods: H pylori-eradicated patients (between 2003 and 2016), identified from a territory-wide database, were observed from the date of H pylori therapy until death or the end of the study (July 2020). Primary exposure was aspirin use as time-varying variable.
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is rapidly emerging in the Asia Pacific region. However, there are many challenges in the diagnosis and management of this condition. The Asian Pacific Association of Gastroenterology (APAGE) Working Group on IBD conducted a round table meeting to identify 10 common mistakes in the management of IBD in Asia.
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- Young-onset gastric carcinoma (in individuals under 50) displays distinct clinicopathological features compared to older patients, prompting a systematic review to investigate this difference.
- A comprehensive search led to the inclusion of 84 studies with nearly 90,000 young patients, revealing insights such as a slight female predominance, high symptom presentation, and significant rates of Helicobacter pylori infection.
- The findings indicated that most tumors occur in the non-cardia region of the stomach and are predominantly of the diffuse-type histology, showing a strong correlation with poor differentiation and a notable familial link to gastric cancer.
Background And Aim: Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) may increase the risk of COVID-19 among non-vaccinated subjects via various mechanisms, including gut dysbiosis. We aimed to investigate whether PPIs also affect the clinical outcomes of COVID-19 among vaccine recipients.
Methods: This was a territory-wide cohort study of 3 272 286 vaccine recipients (aged ≥ 18 years) of ≥ 2 doses of either BNT162b2 or CoronaVac.
Article Synopsis
- The study analyzed trends in gastric cancer incidence and mortality among young-onset (under 40) and late-onset (40 and older) cases globally from 1990 to 2019.
- Despite a general decline in gastric cancer rates, young-onset cases showed a significant increase from 2015 to 2019, contrary to late-onset cases, which continued to drop.
- The research also highlighted a consistent rise in male-to-female incidence and mortality ratios and a more significant decline in late-onset cancer in countries with higher socio-demographic indexes (SDI).
Objective: Whether varying degrees of glycaemic control impact colonic neoplasm risk in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) remains uncertain.
Design: Patients with newly diagnosed DM were retrieved from 2005 to 2013. Optimal glycaemic control at baseline was defined as mean haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c)<7%.
Background And Aims: We investigated whether empagliflozin reduces hepatic steatosis in patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease without diabetes mellitus.
Approach And Results: This was an investigator-initiated, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial recruiting adult subjects from the community. Eligible subjects without diabetes mellitus (fasting plasma glucose < 7 mmol/L and HbA1c < 6.