Utilizing large language models in infectious disease transmission modelling for public health preparedness.

Introduction: OpenAI's ChatGPT, a Large Language Model (LLM), is a powerful tool across domains, designed for text and code generation, fostering collaboration, especially in public health. Investigating the role of this advanced LLM chatbot in assisting public health practitioners in shaping disease transmission models to inform infection control strategies, marks a new era in infectious disease epidemiology research. This study used a case study to illustrate how ChatGPT collaborates with a public health practitioner in co-designing a mathematical transmission model.

Comparative analysis of symptom profile and risk of death associated with infection by SARS-CoV-2 and its variants in Hong Kong.

The recurrent multiwave nature of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) necessitates updating its symptomatology. We characterize the effect of variants on symptom presentation, identify the symptoms predictive and protective of death, and quantify the effect of vaccination on symptom development. With the COVID-19 cases reported up to August 25, 2022 in Hong Kong, an iterative multitier text-matching algorithm was developed to identify symptoms from free text.

Revisiting Vaccine Hesitancy in Residential Care Homes for the Elderly for Pandemic Preparedness: A Lesson from COVID-19.

Residents in residential care homes for the elderly (RCHEs) are at high risk of severe illnesses and mortality, while staff have high exposure to intimate care activities. Addressing vaccine hesitancy is crucial to safeguard vaccine uptake in this vulnerable setting, especially amid a pandemic. In response to this, we conducted a cross-sectional survey to measure the level of vaccine hesitancy and to examine its associated factors among residents and staff in RCHEs in Hong Kong.

Extracting symptoms from free-text responses using ChatGPT among COVID-19 cases in Hong Kong.

Objectives: To investigate the feasibility and performance of Chat Generative Pretrained Transformer (ChatGPT) in converting symptom narratives into structured symptom labels.

Methods: We extracted symptoms from 300 deidentified symptom narratives of COVID-19 patients by a computer-based matching algorithm (the standard), and prompt engineering in ChatGPT. Common symptoms were those with a prevalence >10% according to the standard, and similarly less common symptoms were those with a prevalence of 2-10%.

Temporal variations of vaccine hesitancy amid the COVID-19 outbreaks in Hong Kong.

To inform the dynamic adjustments of vaccination campaigns, this study examined the transitions among vaccine hesitancy profiles over the COVID-19 pandemic progression and their predictors and outcomes. The transition patterns among hesitancy profiles over three periods were identified using a latent transition analysis with individuals from a longitudinal cohort study since the emergence of COVID-19 in Hong Kong. Four profiles (i.

The way forward to achieve high COVID-19 vaccination and revaccination coverage in a city amid a period of tranquility.

Background: Amid the current COVID-19 pandemic, there is an urgent need for both vaccination and revaccination ("boosting"). This study aims to identify factors associated with the intention to receive a booster dose of the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine among individuals vaccinated with two doses and characterize their profiles in Hong Kong, a city with a low COVID-19 incidence in the initial epidemic waves. Among the unvaccinated, vaccination intention is also explored and their profiles are investigated.

Path to normality: Assessing the level of social-distancing measures relaxation against antibody-resistant SARS-CoV-2 variants in a partially-vaccinated population.

Introduction: Two years into the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, populations with less built-up immunity continued to devise ways to optimize social distancing measures (SDMs) relaxation levels for outbreaks triggered by SARS-CoV-2 and its variants to resume minimal economics activities while avoiding hospital system collapse.

Method: An age-stratified compartmental model featuring social mixing patterns was first fitted the incidence data in second wave in Hong Kong. Hypothetical scenario analysis was conducted by varying population mobility and vaccination coverages (VCs) to predict the number of hospital and intensive-care unit admissions in outbreaks initiated by ancestral strain and its variants (Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Omicron).

Estimation of local transmissibility in the early phase of monkeypox epidemic in 2022.

Objectives: To estimate the basic reproductive number (Ro) to help us understand and control the spread of monkeypox in immunologically naive populations.

Methods: Using three highest incidence populations including England, Portugal, and Spain as examples as of 18 June 2022, we employed the branching process with a Poisson likelihood and gamma-distributed serial interval to fit daily reported case data of monkeypox to estimate Ro. Sensitivity analyses were performed by varying mean serial interval from 6.

Effect of prior outbreak work experience to future outbreak responses for nurses in Hong Kong: A cross-sectional study.

Background: During the early phase of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic, health care workers had elevated levels of psychological distress. Historical exposure to disease outbreak may shape different pandemic responses among experienced health care workers.

Aim: Considering the unique experience of the 2003 SARS outbreak in Hong Kong, this study examined the association between prior epidemic work experience and anxiety levels, and the mediating role of perceived severity of COVID-19 and SARS in nurses.

Approaches to multidrug-resistant organism prevention and control in long-term care facilities for older people: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Despite clear evidence of benefits in acute-care hospitals, controversy over the effectiveness of IPC measures for MDROs is perceptible and evidence-based practice has not been established.

Objective: To investigate the effects of IPC interventions on MDRO colonization and infections in LTCFs.

Data Sources: Ovid MEDLINE, EMBASE, and CINAHL from inception to September 2020.

Comparative Study of Two-Dimensional (2D) vs. Three-Dimensional (3D) Organotypic Kertatinocyte-Fibroblast Skin Models for (MRSA) Infection.

The invasion of skin tissue by is mediated by mechanisms that involve sequential breaching of the different stratified layers of the epidermis. Induction of cell death in keratinocytes is a measure of virulence and plays a crucial role in the infection progression. We established a 3D-organotypic keratinocyte-fibroblast co-culture model to evaluate whether a 3D-skin model is more effective in elucidating the differences in the induction of cell death by Methicillin-resistant (MRSA) than in comparison to 2D-HaCaT monolayers.

Psychobehavioral Responses and Likelihood of Receiving COVID-19 Vaccines during the Pandemic, Hong Kong.

To access temporal changes in psychobehavioral responses to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, we conducted a 5-round (R1-R5) longitudinal population-based online survey in Hong Kong during January-September 2020. Most respondents reported wearing masks (R1 99.0% to R5 99.

Evolving Epidemiological Characteristics of COVID-19 in Hong Kong From January to August 2020: Retrospective Study.

Background: COVID-19 has plagued the globe, with multiple SARS-CoV-2 clusters hinting at its evolving epidemiology. Since the disease course is governed by important epidemiological parameters, including containment delays (time between symptom onset and mandatory isolation) and serial intervals (time between symptom onsets of infector-infectee pairs), understanding their temporal changes helps to guide interventions.

Objective: This study aims to characterize the epidemiology of the first two epidemic waves of COVID-19 in Hong Kong by doing the following: (1) estimating the containment delays, serial intervals, effective reproductive number (R), and proportion of asymptomatic cases; (2) identifying factors associated with the temporal changes of the containment delays and serial intervals; and (3) depicting COVID-19 transmission by age assortativity and types of social settings.

Epidemiology, clinical spectrum, viral kinetics and impact of COVID-19 in the Asia-Pacific region.

COVID-19 has hit the world by surprise, causing substantial mortality and morbidity since 2020. This narrative review aims to provide an overview of the epidemiology, induced impact, viral kinetics and clinical spectrum of COVID-19 in the Asia-Pacific Region, focusing on regions previously exposed to outbreaks of coronavirus. COVID-19 progressed differently by regions, with some (such as China and Taiwan) featured by one to two epidemic waves and some (such as Hong Kong and South Korea) featured by multiple waves.

Comparing Public Perceptions and Preventive Behaviors During the Early Phase of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Hong Kong and the United Kingdom: Cross-sectional Survey Study.

Background: Given the public health responses to previous respiratory disease pandemics, and in the absence of treatments and vaccines, the mitigation of the COVID-19 pandemic relies on population engagement in nonpharmaceutical interventions. This engagement is largely driven by risk perception, anxiety levels, and knowledge, as well as by historical exposure to disease outbreaks, government responses, and cultural factors.

Objective: The aim of this study is to compare psychobehavioral responses in Hong Kong and the United Kingdom during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Editor's Choice: Influenza vaccine uptake, COVID-19 vaccination intention and vaccine hesitancy among nurses: A survey.

Background: A healthy healthcare system requires healthy healthcare workers. Protecting healthcare workers including nurses against COVID-19 is crucial, and vaccination could be a viable future option. However, vaccine hesitancy remains a global challenge.

Prevalence and associated factors for carriage of Enterobacteriaceae producing ESBLs or carbapenemase and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Hong Kong community.

Objectives: We conducted a cross-sectional study in Hong Kong community to estimate the carriage prevalence, associated factors and genotypes of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase producing Enterobacteriaceae (ESBL-E), methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE).

Methods: Seemingly healthy subjects were asked to provide nasal, handprint and stool samples from March to April 2017. Isolates were characterized by molecular methods.

Epidemiological characteristics of the first 53 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 epidemic in Hong Kong, 13 February 2020.

BackgroundCOVID-19, caused by SARS-CoV-2, first appeared in China and subsequently developed into an ongoing epidemic. Understanding epidemiological factors characterising the transmission dynamics of this disease is of fundamental importance.AimsThis study aimed to describe key epidemiological parameters of COVID-19 in Hong Kong.

Community Responses during Early Phase of COVID-19 Epidemic, Hong Kong.

During the early phase of the coronavirus disease epidemic in Hong Kong, 1,715 survey respondents reported high levels of perceived risk, mild anxiety, and adoption of personal-hygiene, travel-avoidance, and social-distancing measures. Widely adopted individual precautionary measures, coupled with early government actions, might slow transmission early in the outbreak.