There are about 3753 clinical studies being (or have been) conducted in Hong Kong. The country of the clinical trial is determined by the location of where the clinical research is being studied. Most studies are often held in multiple locations & countries.
This is a novel and the first study to investigate the impacts of the integrated treatment of Tai Chi (TC) and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on sleep disturbances and the potential mechanisms of arousal system. To validate the combination of TC and rTMS as a promising approach for managing sleep disturbance in older adults, the investigators will conduct a four-arm, parallel-group, randomized controlled trial comprising a 4-week treatment phase and a 3-month follow up period. A total of 152 eligible participants will be recruited and randomly assign to the TC plus active rTMS (38 participants), TC plus sham rTMS (38 participants), TC-alone (38 participants), and low-intensity PE (38 participants) control group within two weeks after the baseline assessment. TC plus active rTMS, TC plus sham rTMS, and TC-alone will be compared with a low-intensity PE control group on insomnia severity, various sleep parameters assessed by self-report sleep diary and ActiGraph, emotional states, and physical and mental health related quality of life. The investigators have formulated two hypotheses in this study. First, the three intervention groups, relative to participants undergoing PE, will confer greater improvement in all measured outcomes at post-intervention (T1) and three-month follow-up (T2); and second, in the double-blinded groups, the TC plus active rTMS will show greater improvement in all measured outcomes than TC plus sham rTMS at T1 and T2.
It is a single-center, prospective study, which will be conducted in a tertiary academic hospital (Prince of Wales Hospital). All subjects will undergo a paired examination of HemoPill® acute capsule and oesophago-gastro-duodenoscopy (OGD).
This is a prospective study to investigate the biomarkers in predicting treatment outcome and toxicity in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors with or without stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT).
The current study is a pilot for the GRF project entitled "Predicting illness trajectories in fully remitted major depression using concurrent TBS/fNIRS". The project aims to determine whether immediate prefrontal excitability modulated by intermittent theta-burst stimulation (iTBS) is altered in remitted major depressive disorder (rMDD) and therefore classifies as a potential trait marker to predict the incidence of recurrence. In the present cross-sectional study, we will recruit four clusters of population, including patients diagnosed with rMDD, currently depressed patients with varying numbers of episodes, healthy subjects, and never-depressed healthy subjects with elevated risk for MDD (defined as having a first-degree relative with a history of depression), to investigate the relationship between the number of prior episodes, cognitive function, and TBS-induced instantaneous brain activity change in the presumed neuropathological prefrontal cortex (PFC).
The objective of the study is to establish the safety profile of the autologous engineered osteochondral tissues (eOCT) in treating traumatic chondral lesions in patients.
Drug allergy is often under-recognized, yet over- (mistakenly) diagnosed, especially in Hong Kong. There is also a dire shortage of allergy specialists and facilities to tackle the overwhelming drug allergy pandemic. Fortunately, when trained, non-specialist physicians and nurses have demonstrated comparable capabilities in drug allergy evaluation compared to specialists. To potentially promote and propagate the role of non-specialist physicians and nurses toward drug allergy care, the investigators propose a study to investigate the impact of an intensive and focused drug allergy educational course conducted at the University of Hong Kong.
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved intermittent theta-burst stimulation (iTBS) in 2018 as a form of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS). Hospitals worldwide use it to treat major depressive disorder (MDD). It is safe, effective, even for depressed patients unable to respond to standard pharmacological treatment and is more efficient than standard rTMS. In accordance with the approved treatment protocol, patients experience considerable sensory discomfort at a stimulation intensity of 120% of their resting motor threshold (rMT). Antidepressant effects of iTBS are believed to be mediated by modulating prefrontal excitability. There is still a lack of evidence to support the choice of 120% rMT as the optimal stimulation intensity, and the presumed superiority of higher stimulation intensities over lower intensities has yet to be proven. This knowledge gap has clinical implications since more tolerated treatments may lead to greater adherence, resulting in improved outcomes. The current study proposes a randomized, triple-arm, controlled trial to compare the efficacy of iTBS at 75% (iTBS75) and 120% (iTBS120) rMT with sham iTBS (SiTBS). Based on the following considerations, SiTBS was selected to be compared with iTBS75 and iTBS120: SiTBS will reveal placebo antidepressant effects and serve as a control. iTBS75 is selected because iTBS at 80% aMT exhibits significant excitatory effects on the motor cortex and corresponds to approximately 70% rMT. There is however, a distance of about 12.7mm between the coil and the motor cortex, whereas 14.4mm separates the coil from the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). Accordingly, a resting motor threshold of 70% at the motor cortex corresponds to a distance-adjusted rMT of 75% at the DLPFC. Lastly, iTBS120 is chosen as the standard stimulation intensity in current iTBS depression trials. It is our intention to investigate the potential antidepressant effects of iTBS treatment at a much lower stimulation intensity than the one currently employed by most centers in the United States and approved in these centers. Thus, our study can contribute to establishing a treatment regimen with increased adherence and lower withdrawal rates.
This is a multicenter, multiple expansion cohort, Phase 1 study to evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and anti-tumor activity of DR-0201 in adult patients with relapsed or refractory B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Tuberculosis is a major infectious disease with a high mortality burden in the Asia-Pacific region and worldwide. Among various types of extrapulmonary tuberculosis, tuberculous pleuritis (TBP) is amongst the most common manifestations. TBP is also a major underlying cause among patients hospitalised with new-onset unilateral pleural effusion. The workup of TBP frequently involves thoracentesis to retrieve pleural fluid and pleural biopsy for microbiological and histological interpretations. However, the diagnostic accuracy of these tests is of unsatisfactory sensitivity, making diagnosing TBP challenging. In addition, certain tests, including pleural fluid adenosine deaminase (ADA), Mycobacterium tuberculosis polymerase chain reaction (MTB PCR), advanced biopsy procedures (e.g. real-time image-guided biopsy, pleuroscopy) are not readily available in developing regions due to scarcity of resources and lack of expertise. All these factors lead to heterogeneous practice in approaching new-onset pleural effusion, interpretation of pleural TB investigations, and timing of TBP treatment initiation among respiratory physicians in different Asia-Pacific regions. The proposed multinational survey aims to understand the real-world clinical practice in approaching patients with new-onset unilateral pleural effusion and diagnosing TBP in Asia-Pacific regions with intermediate to high TB burden. The results will reflect the current practice of diagnosing TBP, clinical and resource discrepancies in investigating TBP, management of TBP and help prioritise the need for further research in TBP
The goal of this observational study is to evaluate and compare the performance of two prosthetic feet for unilateral transtibial amputees during both indoor and outdoor activities. The main research questions aim to answer are: 1. Can a low-cost prosthetic foot enhance gait mechanics and physical performance in individuals who have undergone traumatic unilateral transtibial amputation, as compared to the traditional K2 - K3 prosthetic feet currently available on the market, during both indoor and outdoor activities? 2. Can the low-cost prosthetic foot meet user satisfaction levels after traumatic unilateral transtibial amputation, when compared to the traditional K2 - K3 prosthetic foot on the market? Participants will be asked to do 1. Prior to the commencement of the experiment, a professional prosthetist and orthotist will conduct all fitting and alignment procedures for the transtibial amputees. Participants will then be given a two to three-week period to train and acclimate to the individual socket alignment and prosthetic foot. 2. Participants are asked to refrain from consuming caffeine or any stimulants for 24 hours before the tests. 3. Participants will be required to perform the Berg Balance Test. 4. Participants will undergo a series of clinical tests, including: 1) Time to Go Up (measured in seconds), 2) Four Square Step Test (measured in seconds), 3) 10-Meter Walk Test (measured in seconds), 4) Eye Close Standing, 5) Tandem Test, and 6) Functional Reach Test. Each test will be conducted three times. The test items of 4) and 5) will be performed on a force plate (Bertect, Ohio, USA) with dimensions of 400 x 600 mm and a capturing frequency of 1,000 Hz. 5. Participants will be asked to walk on a force plate (AMTI, Advanced Mechanical Technology, Inc., Watertown, USA) at a fixed walking speed of 1.11 ± 0.11m/s, allowing the foot to land naturally on the force plate. Five trials of the gait cycle with a clean foot will be used for analysis. 6. Participants will perform the Counter Movement Jump Test three times with maximum effort on the force plate (Bertect, Ohio, USA), which will be performed without a hand swing. 7. Participants will be asked to perform a 2-minute walking test on flat concrete ground, stairs, and a ramp, respectively. 8. Finally, participants will be asked to complete the Locomotion Capabilities Index questionnaire.