Epidemiology of health changes in older women in Hong Kong.

This paper aims to present the baseline social, mental and functional characteristics, the changes of these characteristics over a 36-month follow-up period, and the issues and implications related to these changes, particularly in older women. The cohort comprising 2030 subjects aged 70 and above has been assembled by stratified disproportional random sampling. Registrants with the Old Age Allowance Scheme, which has over 90 percent coverage of the Hong Kong elderly population, was used to define the accessible population.

Adverse effects of low-level air pollution on the respiratory health of schoolchildren in Hong Kong.

To evaluate the respiratory effects of long-term exposure to air pollution, schoolchildren (ages 8 to 12 years) from two districts in Hong Kong with contrasting air quality were studied. Parents of 1660 children completed questionnaires on respiratory symptoms, and 1294 children had their ventilatory function tested with a spirometer. After adjustment for relevant covariates, children living in the more polluted district had increased odds ratios for frequent cough (1.

Preventive services advertised to the public by private hospitals in Hong Kong.

To evaluate the preventive activities offered to the public by private hospitals in Hong Kong, we obtained information from 11 of the 12 private hospitals about their screening programmes and evaluated them against the standards of the Canadian and United States task forces on preventive health care. We found that not all proven preventive activities are being offered, and many unproven or even possibly harmful actions are provided. The services focus on the application of technology rather than on behaviour change and immunisation, which are the most effective preventive strategies.

Intake of soy products is associated with better plasma lipid profiles in the Hong Kong Chinese population.

We describe the pattern of soy intake and its association with blood lipid concentrations in the Hong Kong Chinese population. Subjects were contacted by random telephone survey and invited to a hospital for a physical examination and blood tests. A total of 500 men and 510 women with an age range of 24-74 y completed the dietary intake study.

Menopausal symptoms and symptom clustering in Chinese women.

Objectives: this paper aims to report the prevalence of symptoms in the Hong Kong Chinese perimenopausal women; to construct reported symptoms into symptom groupings; and to clarify whether the symptom groups are associated with menopausal status.

Methods: a random telephone survey of perimenopausal women aged 44-55 years was conducted in 1996. Eligible subjects were identified through telephone dialing of a random sample of the numbers listed in the residents' telephone directory.

Smoking and mortality in an older Chinese cohort.

Objectives: Only limited data are available regarding smoking and health in later life and, in particular, in the older Chinese population. This paper reports the relationship between smoking and mortality in a Chinese cohort aged 70 years and older.

Setting: A population-based study conducted in Hong Kong.

Should adolescents be vaccinated against hepatitis A: the Hong Kong experience.

Hong Kong is a well developed city in the center of an endemic region for hepatitis A. The age at which hepatitis A occurs has shifted from childhood and adolescence to adults like many western countries. There is a high chance of outbreaks with the introduction of infection from neighbouring countries.

Changing hepatitis A epidemiology among Hong Kong Chinese adolescents: what are the implications?

Objective: To study the sero-epidemiology of hepatitis A virus (HAV) among adolescents in Hong Kong and analyse the changing patterns of the infection rates.

Design: Cross sectional study.

Setting: Secondary school students.

The health consequences of vertebral deformity in elderly Chinese men and women.

The following health consequences of vertebral deformity in Hong Kong elderly Chinese men and women were studied: the prevalence of back pain, disability due to back pain, and low morale. Lateral X-ray films were taken of the thoracic and lumbar spine of 796 community-dwelling Chinese subjects (396 men, 400 women) (aged 70-79). Subjects with one or more definitely deformed vertebra (reduction in vertebral height 3 SD or more below the mean) were classified as definite cases, those with one or more mildly deformed vertebra (reduction in vertebral height 2-2.

Herpes simplex virus type 2 infection in a 5-year-old boy presenting with recurrent chest wall vesicles and a possible history of herpes encephalitis.

A 5-year-old hyperkinetic but otherwise healthy child presented with recurrent irritable vesicles and erosions of the anterior chest wall; they have been apparent since the age of 15 months. Wound swab cultures yielded herpes simplex virus type-2 (HSV-2) and Western blot serology showed past exposure to both HSV-1 and HSV-2. Skin biopsy results further supported a herpes virus infection.

Health care needs in the Tai Po district of Hong Kong initial indications from a population-based study.

The objective of this study was to obtain a representative profile of residents in Tai Po district, Hong Kong, with regard to their health status, health service use and socio- demographic characteristics. From October 1992 to February 1993, a cross-sectional telephone survey of 7573 Tai Po residents was undertaken. Acute illness episodes in the past month, chronic illness history, and treatment choices for acute and chronic illnesses were used as outcomes.

What do patients expect from consultations for upper respiratory tract infections?

Background And Objective: A cross-sectional survey was conducted amongst patients who consulted for upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) at 22 private practitioners' offices.

Method: A total of 505 adult patients and 504 guardians (parents or grandparents of child patients) completed a self-administered questionnaire.

Results: The majority thought that URTI would not resolve on its own, while half thought that injections would speed recovery.

Low back pain in Hong Kong: prevalence and characteristics compared with Britain.

Study Objective: To compare the prevalence of low back pain and associated disability in Hong Kong with that in Britain, and to explore whether differences could be explained by certain known risk factors.

Design: A cross sectional survey with information collected at interview. Findings were compared with those from an earlier survey in Britain.

Determinants of bone mass in the Chinese old-old population.

One hundred and eighty-eight elderly men and women were included in a study of bone mass at the neck of femur and its related factors. The study subjects were a subsample of a Hong Kong wide study of the elderly population aged 70 years and above. The study variables included age, sex, body measurements of height, weight, body mass index, dietary calcium intake, grip strength, 16 feet (5 m) gait speed, smoking, drinking, and years since menopause among women.

Ischaemic heart disease: trends in mortality in Hong Kong, 1970-89.

Study Objective: To describe the time trends for ischaemic heart disease (IHD) mortality in Hong Kong between 1970 and 1989, and to examine these trends in relation to the risk factors for IHD.

Design: A descriptive epidemiological study of time trends using mortality and population data from the Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department. Direct standardisation using the world population was made to adjust for the changing age structure.

Prevalence and determinants of the use of traditional Chinese medicine in Hong Kong.

We studied 2,822 subjects above 18 years of age in Hong Kong by random telephone interview to assess the role of traditional Chinese medicine in health care. During their most recent illness, 73% consulted Western doctors, 17% self-medicated while 9% consulted herbalists. Age and education were important determinants of their health care choice.

Mortality mapping in Hong Kong, 1979-83 and 1984-88: the patterns of major non-malignant diseases.

We examined the spatial patterns of mortality from various non-malignant diseases in Hong Kong during the two quinquennia, 1979-83 and 1984-88. Population data and parameters reflecting socioeconomic factors, including ethnic backgrounds, were selected from census data. Mortality data were obtained from death registration files.

Determinants of bone mass in Chinese women aged 21-40 years. II. Pattern of dietary calcium intake and association with bone mineral density.

A study on the determinants of bone mass in young women is being carried out among 287 young Chinese women aged 21-40 years. The baseline cross-sectional data show that the mean dietary calcium intake, estimated from the quantitative food frequency method, was 448 mg/day (standard deviation = 219). About 50% of the calcium source was from vegetables and 22% from dairy products.

A longitudinal study of the determinants of bone mass in Chinese women aged 21 to 40. I. Baseline association of anthropometric measurements with bone mineral density.

The bone mineral density of the lumbar spine (L2 to L4) and neck of the femur of 293 Chinese women aged 21 to 40 years was measured using a dual x-ray densitometer. The participants were recruited from subjects registered with the University Family Medicine Clinic in Hong Kong. Our cross-sectional data showed that maximal bone mass occurs in the early 30s.

Major factors of industrial noise-induced hearing loss in Hong Kong.

A tripartite participation of government, trade unions and university was formed in 1988 to study the situation of industrial noise and hearing acuity of workers. Since 1982, the six industries identified by the Noise Control Office were construction, electronics, metals, plastics, shipbuilding and repairing, and textiles. Safety-subcommittees were formed.

Physical activity and calcium intake in fracture of the proximal femur in Hong Kong.

In Hong Kong physical activity and calcium intake of 400 Chinese men and women with hip fractures were compared with those of 800 controls. Daily walking outdoors, upstairs, uphill, or with a load protected against fracture. This was independent of cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption.