The Chinese University of Hong Kong

About: The Chinese University of Hong Kong is a education organization based out in Hong Kong, China. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Computer science. The organization has 43411 authors who have published 93672 publications receiving 3066651 citations.

Politically-Connected CEOs, Corporate Governance and Post-IPO Performance of China's Partially Privatized Firms

Abstract: Property rules of China's partial share issue privatization have created rent-seeking incentives for politicians that may hurt the performance and corporate governance of newly listed state enterprises. This study reports that almost 28% of the CEOs in the sample of 625 firms are ex- or current government bureaucrats. The three-year post-IPO average stock returns of the sample underperform the market by 20%, and the underperformance of firms with such politically-connected CEOs exceeds those without politically-connected CEOs by almost 30%. Firms with politically-connected CEOs are more likely to appoint other bureaucrats to boards of directors, while they appoint fewer directors with relevant professional background or prior business experience, nor any representative of minority shareholders. The presence of politically-connected CEOs is related to the unemployment and fiscal conditions of the firms' regions while unrelated to most firm characteristics. Overall, the results indicate that the appointment of politically-connected CEOs does not enhance shareholder value but rather fulfill political goals of politicians.

Global, regional, and national burden of suicide mortality 1990 to 2016: systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016

Abstract: Objectives To use the estimates from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016 to describe patterns of suicide mortality globally, regionally, and for 195 countries and territories by age, sex, and Socio-demographic index, and to describe temporal trends between 1990 and 2016. Design Systematic analysis. Main outcome measures Crude and age standardised rates from suicide mortality and years of life lost were compared across regions and countries, and by age, sex, and Socio-demographic index (a composite measure of fertility, income, and education). Results The total number of deaths from suicide increased by 6.7% (95% uncertainty interval 0.4% to 15.6%) globally over the 27 year study period to 817 000 (762 000 to 884 000) deaths in 2016. However, the age standardised mortality rate for suicide decreased by 32.7% (27.2% to 36.6%) worldwide between 1990 and 2016, similar to the decline in the global age standardised mortality rate of 30.6%. Suicide was the leading cause of age standardised years of life lost in the Global Burden of Disease region of high income Asia Pacific and was among the top 10 leading causes in eastern Europe, central Europe, western Europe, central Asia, Australasia, southern Latin America, and high income North America. Rates for men were higher than for women across regions, countries, and age groups, except for the 15 to 19 age group. There was variation in the female to male ratio, with higher ratios at lower levels of Socio-demographic index. Women experienced greater decreases in mortality rates (49.0%, 95% uncertainty interval 42.6% to 54.6%) than men (23.8%, 15.6% to 32.7%). Conclusions Age standardised mortality rates for suicide have greatly reduced since 1990, but suicide remains an important contributor to mortality worldwide. Suicide mortality was variable across locations, between sexes, and between age groups. Suicide prevention strategies can be targeted towards vulnerable populations if they are informed by variations in mortality rates.

Treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma with intensity-modulated radiotherapy: the Hong Kong experience.

Abstract: Purpose To evaluate the efficacy of using intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) in the primary treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), including the role of dose escalation above 66 Gy level. Methods and materials Between July 2000 and September 2002, 63 newly diagnosed NPC patients were treated with IMRT. The disease was Stage I in 9 (14%), Stage II in 18 (29%), Stage III in 22 (35%), and Stage IV in 14 (22%). The prescribed dose was 66 Gy to the gross tumor volume (GTV) and positive neck nodes, 60 Gy to the planning target volume (PTV), and 54–60 Gy to the clinically negative neck. All 20 (100%) patients with T1-2a tumors received intracavitary brachytherapy (ICB) boost, and 15/42 (36%) patients with T2b-T4 tumors received conformal boost (8 Gy/4 fractions). Nineteen patients with advanced stage disease also received either neoadjuvant or concurrent chemotherapy. Acute and late normal tissue effects were graded according to the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) radiation morbidity scoring criteria. Local relapse-free survival (LRFS), nodal relapse-free survival (NRFS), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS), and overall survival (OS) were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Results With a median follow-up of 29 months (range 8–45 months), 4 patients developed local in-field failure, 1 patient developed regional relapse, and 13 patients developed distant metastases. All 4 patients with local failure had either T3 or T4 disease before primary treatment and did not have ICB or conformal boost. The 3-year actuarial LRFS, NRFS, DMFS, and OS were 92%, 98%, 79%, and 90%, respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that dose escalation above 66 Gy was significantly associated with better PFS and DMFS, whereas GTV size was a significant adverse factor for OS. The worst acute mucositis was Grade 1 or 2 in 36 (59%), and Grade 3 in 25 (41%) patients. Acute dysphagia requiring tube feeding occurred in 5 (8%) patients. The proportion of patients with Grade 2-3 xerostomia was 57% at 3 months, and 23% at 2 years after IMRT. Within the subset of patients with a mean parotid dose of Conclusion Our experience of using IMRT in the primary treatment of NPC showed a very high rate of locoregional control and favorable toxicity profile. Furthermore, we found that dose escalation above 66 Gy of IMRT-based therapy was a significant determinant of progression-free survival and distant metastasis-free survival for advanced T-stage tumors. Distant metastases represent the predominant mode of treatment failure.

Thoracic paravertebral block.

Abstract: Thoracic paravertebral blocks can be used to provide analgesia for unilateral trunk surgeries. Ultrasound-guided approaches for needle tip placement and injection monitoring are described. Anterior displacement of the pleura occurs with injection of local anesthetic in the paravertebral space.