Biomedical subjects

D K L Cheuk

Publications and source records attributed to D K L Cheuk.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Acupuncture for epilepsy.

BACKGROUND: Seizures are poorly controlled in many people with epilepsy despite adequate current antiepileptic treatments. There is increasing interest in alternative therapies such as acupuncture; however, it remains unclear whether the existing evidence is rigorous enough to support the use of acupuncture. OBJECTIVES: To determine the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture in people with epilepsy. SEARCH STRATEGY: We searched the Cochrane Epilepsy Group's Specialized Register (June 2005) and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library Issue 3, 2005). We also searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, AMED, TCMLARS, China Biological Medicine Database, Chinese Acupuncture Trials Register, National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, and National Institute of Health Clinical Trials Database from inception to June 2005. Reference lists from relevant trials were reviewed. No language restrictions were imposed. SELECTION CRITERIA: Randomised controlled trials evaluating any form of acupuncture involving people of any age with any type of epilepsy were included. Trials included were those comparing acupuncture with placebo, sham or no treatment; or comparing acupuncture plus other treatments with the same other treatments. Trials that only compared different acupuncture methods or compared acupuncture alone with other treatments were excluded. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Two review authors independently extracted trial data and assessed trial quality using the Jadad score. Relative risk (RR) was used for binary data and weighted mean difference for continuous data, and 95% confidence intervals are given. Where possible, analyses were by intention to treat. MAIN RESULTS: Three small trials of varying methodological quality and with short follow up met the inclusion criteria. Two studied children in China and one studied adults in Norway. The two Chinese studies compared acupuncture plus Chinese herbs with Chinese herbs alone while the Norwegian study compared acupuncture with sham acupuncture. The two Chinese studies found that more children treated with acupuncture achieved 75% or greater reduction in seizure frequency (RR 1.52, 95% CI 1.12 to 2.05) and seizure duration (RR 2.38, 95% CI 1.13 to 5) with a significant 50% or greater reduction in seizure duration (RR 1.36, 95% CI 1.07 to 1.73). However, the two trials were of low quality without adequate description of randomisation method, concealment of randomisation or blinding. On the other hand, the higher quality Norwegian trial found that acupuncture did not improve the mean seizure frequency, seizure-free weeks, or quality of life in adults. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: The current evidence does not support acupuncture as a treatment for epilepsy. Much larger high quality clinical trials employing appropriate controls are needed.

Acupuncture Therapy↗

PubMed2006

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and blood mercury level: a case-control study in Chinese children.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between blood mercury level and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in Chinese children in Hong Kong. METHODS: Fifty-two children with ADHD aged below 18 years diagnosed by DSM IV criteria without perinatal brain insults, mental retardation or neurological deficits were recruited from a developmental assessment center. Fifty-nine normal controls were recruited from a nearby hospital. Blood mercury levels were measured by cold vapor atomic absorption spectrophotometry. RESULTS: The mean ages of cases and controls were 7.06 and 7.81 years respectively. Boys predominated (case = 44 [84.6 %], control = 44 [74.6 %]). There was significant difference in blood mercury levels between cases and controls (geometric mean 18.2 nmol/L [95 % CI 15.4 - 21.5 nmol/L] vs. 11.6 nmol/L [95 % CI 9.9 - 13.7 nmol/L], p < 0.001), which persists after adjustment for age, gender and parental occupational status (p < 0.001). The geometric mean blood mercury level was also significantly higher in children with inattentive (19.4 nmol/L, 95 % CI 13.3 - 28.5 nmol/L) and combined (18.0 nmol/L, 95 % CI 14.9 - 21.8 nmol/L) subtypes of ADHD. Blood mercury levels were above 29 nmol/L in 17 (26.9 %) cases and 6 (10.2 %) controls. Children with blood mercury level above 29 nmol/L had 9.69 times (95 % CI 2.57 - 36.5) higher risk of having ADHD after adjustment for confounding variables. CONCLUSION: High blood mercury level was associated with ADHD. Whether the relationship is causal requires further studies.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

Use of midazolam and ketamine as sedation for children undergoing minor operative procedures.

OBJECTIVES: We used intravenous midazolam and ketamine for children undergoing minor operative procedures with satisfactory results. We aimed to further evaluate its efficacy and adverse effects in pediatric ward setting. METHODS: This was a prospective study of all children undergoing minor operations with sedation in our pediatric general and oncology wards from July 1998 to June 1999. The procedures included lumber puncture+/-intrathecal chemotherapy, bone marrow aspiration+/-trephine biopsy, central venous catheter removal, skin biopsy, or their combination. All sedation procedures were started with midazolam 0.1 mg/kg and ketamine 1 mg/kg; they were increased gradually to 0.4 and 4 mg/kg, respectively, if necessary. Heart rate and SaO2 were continuously monitored. RESULTS: Altogether, 369 minor operations were performed in 112 patients (male:female=2:1, median age 6 years, range 5 months-17 years). All achieved adequate sedation, with 96% within 30 s and 75% required just the starting dose. Younger children required a higher dosage (p=0.003 for midazolam, p<0.001 for ketamine). The median recovery time was 87 min, with no association with age, sex, or dosage of sedation, but was longer in patients having hallucination (p=0.001). Adverse effects included tachycardia (27.9%), increased secretion (17.6%), agitation (13.6%), nausea and vomiting (9.2%), hallucination (8.7%), desaturation (8.4%), and cataleptic reaction (0.8%). All desaturation episodes were transient and responded to oxygen supplement alone. None developed bronchospasm or convulsion. Some adverse effects were dose-related. Half of the children who received 0.3 mg/kg midazolam developed desaturation. CONCLUSIONS: Intravenous midazolam-ketamine can provide rapid, effective, and safe sedation for children undergoing minor operations in ward setting. Adverse effects are mild. Midazolam above 0.3 mg/kg should be used with caution.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

Complementary and miscellaneous interventions for nocturnal enuresis in children.

BACKGROUND: Nocturnal enuresis (bedwetting) is a socially disruptive and stressful condition which affects around 15 to 20% of five year olds, and up to 2% of young adults. OBJECTIVES: To assess the effects of complementary interventions and others such as surgery or diet on nocturnal enuresis in children, and to compare them with other interventions. SEARCH STRATEGY: We searched the Cochrane Incontinence Group Specialised Register (searched 22 November 2004), the Traditional Chinese Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System (TCMLARS) (January 1984 to June 2004) and the reference lists of relevant articles. SELECTION CRITERIA: All randomised or quasi-randomised trials of complementary and other miscellaneous interventions for nocturnal enuresis in children were included except those focused solely on daytime wetting. Comparison interventions could include no treatment, placebo or sham treatment, alarms, simple behavioural treatment, desmopressin, imipramine and miscellaneous other drugs and interventions. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Two reviewers independently assessed the quality of the eligible trials, and extracted data. MAIN RESULTS: In 15 randomised controlled trials, 1389 children were studied, of whom 703 received a complementary intervention. The quality of the trials was poor: four trials were quasi-randomised, five showed differences at baseline and ten lacked follow up data. The outcome was better after hypnosis than imipramine in one trial (relative risk (RR) for failure or relapse after stopping treatment 0.42, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.23 to 0.78). Psychotherapy appeared to be better in terms of fewer children failing or relapsing than both alarm (RR 0.28, 95% CI 0.09 to 0.85) and rewards (0.29, 95% 0.09 to 0.90) but this depended on data from only one trial. Acupuncture had better results than sham control acupuncture (RR for failure or relapse after stopping treatment 0.67, 95% CI 0.48 to 0.94) in a further trial. Active chiropractic adjustment had better results than sham adjustment (RR for failure or relapse after stopping treatment 0.74, 95% CI 0.60 to 0.91). However, each of these findings came from small single trials, and need to be verified in further trials. The findings for diet and faradization were unreliable, and there were no trials including homeopathy or surgery. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: There was weak evidence to support the use of hypnosis, psychotherapy, acupuncture and chiropractic but it was provided in each case by single small trials, some of dubious methodological rigour. Robust randomised trials are required with efficacy, cost-effectiveness and adverse effects carefully monitored.

Acupuncture Therapy↗

PubMed2005

A meta-analysis on intravenous magnesium sulphate for treating acute asthma.

AIM: To evaluate the effectiveness of intravenous magnesium sulphate in the treatment of acute asthmatic attacks in children by meta-analysis. METHODS: A systematic and comprehensive search of the literature was performed to identify controlled clinical trials of magnesium sulphate in paediatric acute asthma which evaluated outcomes of hospitalisation or short term pulmonary function tests or symptom scores. Unpublished data were searched by personal contacts with authors and specialists. Two reviewers independently assessed trial qualities and synthesised data. Heterogeneity among studies was evaluated by the Cochrane Q test. Outcome data were pooled by random or fixed effect models depending on presence or absence of heterogeneity. RESULTS: Five randomised placebo controlled trials involving a total of 182 patients were identified. They compared intravenous magnesium sulphate to placebo in treating paediatric patients with moderate to severe asthmatic attacks in the emergency department, with co-therapies of inhaled beta2 agonists and systemic steroids. The studies were of high quality with results judged to be valid. Four studies showed that magnesium sulphate was effective, while one study found it ineffective. There was no significant heterogeneity in the primary outcome of hospitalisation. In the fixed effect model, magnesium sulphate is effective in preventing hospitalisation (OR 0.290, 95% CI 0.143 to 0.589). The number needed to treat is 4 (95% CI 3 to 8). Secondary outcomes of short term pulmonary function tests and clinical symptom scores also showed significant improvement. CONCLUSION: Intravenous magnesium sulphate probably provides additional benefit in moderate to severe acute asthma in children treated with bronchodilators and steroids.

Acute Disease↗

PubMed2004

Parents' understanding of their child's congenital heart disease.

OBJECTIVES: To assess parents' understanding of their child's congenital heart disease in various knowledge domains and to identify significant determinants of parental knowledge. DESIGN: Cross sectional questionnaire survey SETTING: Tertiary paediatric cardiac centre. PATIENTS: 156 parents of children with relatively simple congenital heart defects were recruited from the outpatient clinic of a tertiary cardiac centre over a three month period. The questionnaire comprised 10 items of knowledge under three domains: nature of heart disease and its treatment; impact of heart disease on exercise capacity; and infective endocarditis and its prevention. The frequency distribution of the parents' knowledge in the different domains was determined. Univariate analyses and logistic regression were performed to identify significant determinants of knowledge in selected items. RESULTS: While 59% of parents correctly named their child's congenital heart disease, only 28.8% correctly indicated the heart lesion(s) diagrammatically. However, more than 80% of parents were aware of the indications and aims of previous surgical and transcatheter interventions. About half of the parents were aware of possible aetiologies and of the hereditary nature and symptoms attributable to underlying heart disease. Disappointingly, of the 56 parents whose children were taking cardiac medications, only 25 (44.6%) and 4 (7.1%) knew correctly the functions and important side effects of the medications, respectively. With regard to exercise capacity, 59% of parents indicated its level appropriate for the heart lesion. While 26.9% of parents had heard of the term "infective endocarditis", slightly more than half of the parents were aware of the need for antibiotics before dental procedures. Significant determinants of knowledge in the nature of heart disease were cardiac diagnosis, occupation of parents, and their educational level. Logistic regression failed to identify any significant determinants of parental knowledge in the other two domains. CONCLUSIONS: Parents of children with congenital heart disease have important knowledge gaps. Our findings suggest that the current educational programme is inadequate and needs to be refined to promote better parental understanding of their child's heart disease, with the ultimate aim of enabling parents to impart such knowledge accurately to their children.

Adult↗