Division of Hand and Foot Surgery Chief: Prof SP Chow Deputy: Dr WY IP
Staff: Dr B Fung, Dr KH Ng
The full complement of hand and foot
reconstructive surgery is performed by the division. While the foot and
ankle part of the division is a relatively young specialty being established
in 1998, hand surgery has a long tradition dating back to the 1970s. It has
an international reputation for its management of hand injuries, being the
first in Hong Kong to perform a successful microsurgical thumb transplant in
1977, and has prospectively collected the largest series of hand fractures
in the world with over 1,000 cases. New methods of fixation for hand
fractures are developed and two of our designs are already patented.
The division sees approximately 10,000 cases per year in its various
out-patient clinics including general clinics as well as its
multidisciplinary hand clinics and foot clinics. These combined clinics are
held together with the physiotherapists and occupational therapists, and in
the case of foot clinics, the podiatrists and prosthetists. They represent a
“one stop centre” for the convenience of the patients and surgeons alike. A
congenital hand clinic is held at the Duchess of Kent Children’s Hospital,
where particular attention has been placed on the management of cerebral
palsy related upper-limb problems. Artificial limbs, including prosthetic
hands and sophisticated myo-electric limbs can be made at the MacLehose
Medical Rehabilitation Centre. Neuroprosthesis to mobilize upper limbs in
tetraplegic patients will be the coming goal to pursue.
With the changing spectrum of pathologies from injuries to degenerative and
inflammatory conditions, the division is paying increased attention to the
development of artificial finger joints. We have our own novel design which
has already undergone biomechanical and animal tests.
The next stage is to perform clinical trials. Tissue engineering is another
area which will be complimentary to microsurgery. The use of resorbable
polymers for guided bone regeneration in segmental bone loss was proven
successful in animal models, and similar techniques are currently being
applied by our division to clinical cases, with promising early results.
Research
Excellence in research is a major goal within
the Division, special areas of development include bone regeneration using a
tissue engineering approach, arthroplasties for finger joints, and the use
of growth factors for wound problems. Clinical areas of interest include the
use of functional electrical stimulation, artificial sensation and surgery
in reconstruction of neuromuscular conditions, outcome of tendo-Achilles
rupture and management of tibialis posterior dysfunction. Examples of previous and ongoing studies Hand fracture (supported by Research Grants Council of Hong Kong): Splintage programme Distal phalangeal fracture study Biomechanical study of various internal fixation methods Biomechanical study of soft tissue in finger
Wound Management:
Upper limb prosthesis: Artificial sensation & its application in prosthesis, myoelectric hand & pressure sores. -
Implantable EMG recording electrode
Neuromuscular disease Difficult wrist problem: Clinical study on rare infection in hand and wrist: Observational study of our treatment result New drug treatment regime Rare hand & wrist infection
Microsurgery |
