Bulletin Autumn‧Winter 1999

Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fund Public Lecture P r o f. Lee K u o H s i u n g ( l e ft 4), K e n a n Professor of Me d i c i n a l Ch em i s t r y at the University of No r t h Carolina at Chapel H i l l i n the US, gave a lecture on ' S t r u c t u r al M o d i f i c a t i on of A c t i v e P r i n c i p l es f r om Chinese Medicine' on 25th August 1999. Professorial Inaugural Lecture Prof. Joseph Sung, professor of medicine and therapeutics, delivered his inaugural lecture entitled 'Eat, D r i n k and Be Ha p p y ' on 26th March 1999. Medical News New Treatments, New Findings, and New Inventions Innovative Treatment for Bleeding Peptic Ulcers Bleeding peptic ulcers are a common medical emergency w i t h a mortality rate of around 10 per cent. H o n g K o n g has one o f the highest incidences of the condition i n the wo r l d . Wh i le surger y used to be the only e f f e c t i v e mean s to stop b l e e d i n g, the Endoscopy Centre of the Faculty of Medicine has de v e l oped a n ew treatment me t h od wh i ch reduces mortality rates and speeds up patient care. The centre's research durin g the past 10 years demonstrated that the injection of adrenaline via the endoscope reduce s the need for b l o o d t r an s f u s i on and surgery. R e c e n t l y a d r e n a l i n e i n j e c t i o n w a s c omp l eme n t e d b y heater p r obe t h e r ma l treatment. N o w only about three to four per cent of patients require surgery and overall mo r t a l i t y is a r o u nd fou r to five per cent compared to 10 per cent reported by medical centres i n the West. The t r e a t me n t is especially suite d for elderly patients. Milestone for Paediatric Minimally Invasive Surgery The Department of Surgery performed th e world's first laparoscopic operation i n Ma y Demonstrating the use of heater probe for thermal treatment N e w s in Brie f 55