Replies to LegCo questions
LCQ9: Dementia
Following is a question by the Hon Leung Kwok-hung and a written reply by the
Secretary for Food and Health, Dr York Chow, in the Legislative Council today
(February 23):
Question:
Quite a number of social workers, doctors as well as elderly groups, medical
specialist groups and groups for persons with disabilities have complained to me
that the Government, without consulting the public and professional groups, has
casually adopted the result of a renaming competition organised by a charitable
organisation at the end of last year, and arbitrarily and unprofessionally
changed the Chinese rendition of dementia to "���h�Ưg". Some social workers and
doctors have categorically pointed out that from the medical point of view,
symptoms of dementia are indeed not the same as those of "���h�Ưg", and that the
Chinese rendition "�Ѧ~���b�g", instead of "���h�Ưg", is still being used as the
official name of dementia in medical journals, worldwide medical organisations,
legal terminologies and documents of public hospitals at present. In this
connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) when the Government changed the official Chinese rendition of dementia to
"���h�Ưg";
(b) whether the Government had consulted the public and professional groups when
making such a change; if it had, when the consultation was conducted, and
according to the consultation report, of the respective groups which expressed
support for and those which opposed;
(c) according to the assessment by the Government, whether the symptoms of
"���h�Ưg" are exactly the same as those of dementia from a medical point of view;
if not, why the official Chinese rendition of dementia was changed to"���h�Ưg"; if
so, whether it has disproved the professional views of elderly groups and
medical specialist groups;
(d) when changing the official Chinese rendition of dementia to "���h�Ưg", whether
the Government had requested the Legislative Council to amend the legal
terminology in the relevant ordinances simultaneously and asked public hospitals
and government departments, such as the Social Welfare Department, etc. to amend
the relevant documents; if it had, when such requests were made; if not, of the
reasons for that; and
(e) whether the change is recognised by worldwide medical organisations, so as
to prevent Hong Kong's medical sector and the Government from being ridiculed as
unprofessional; if so, when and from which organisations such recognition was
obtained; if not, of the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
(a) to (e) "Dementia" is a syndrome of brain disease. It is a medical term used
to describe the co-existence of various specific symptoms. The symptoms of
dementia include a decline in memory and cognitive functions, and patients may
display symptoms such as disruptive behaviour, delusions or hallucinations, etc.
The personality and behaviors of patients may also change. Dementia may have
different causes and there are three main categories of dementia:
(1) Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common type of dementia. The causes of
AD are not known yet and the degeneration is progressive;
(2) Vascular dementia is triggered by strokes or cerebro-vascular problems that
cause damage to the brain. Degeneration can come on suddenly and fast; and
(3) Other kinds of dementia may be caused by depression, inadequate nutrition,
hypothyroidism and drug poisoning. These patients can alleviate their conditions
through medications. In some circumstances, dementia may be caused by other
disorders such as Parkinson's disease and AIDS, etc.
The Hospital Authority (HA) and the Department of Health (DH) have all along
dedicated their efforts to promoting awareness of dementia among the public so
as to eliminate misunderstanding and discrimination in the community and
encourage patients to seek early medical treatment.
At present, some diseases may have other names in addition to their official
medical terms. "���h�Ưg" is an award-winning entry in a "dementia" renaming
competition organised by a non-government organisation. It was the aim of the
organiser that through public participation, a Chinese term generally acceptable
to the public would be selected for daily communication in an effort to promote
public acceptance and support for patients with dementia, and assist the
patients and their family members in facing the condition with an active
attitude. We understand and respect the expectations of the patients and their
family members for elimination of discrimination. We also recognise that the
activity is conducive to enhancing public understanding and support for patients
with dementia.
Since degeneration of the brain is not the sole cause of dementia and cannot
fully reflect the symptoms of dementia, HA and DH have no plan to adopt "���h�Ưg"
as the official medical term of dementia. On the basis of a medical consensus
and having regard to the names adopted by international medical organisations,
experts from HA and DH will consider whether it is necessary to adopt a name
which can reflect the symptoms of the condition and at the same time facilitate
communication and exchanges among various sectors, including members of the
public, the healthcare sector and international organisations, etc.
Ends/Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Issued at HKT 13:48
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