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Objective: This study aims to investigate physicians’ perceptions of stroke prevention management and patients’ knowledge of AF and warfarin therapy in Hong Kong. Method: Three different questionnaires modified from 4 studies from foreign countries were used to assess physicians’ perceptions of stroke prevention management, patients’ knowledge of AF and patients’ knowledge of warfarin therapy respectively. Different score systems were developed to compare the results with the foreign countries the 4 studies investigated. Physicians’ characteristics and patients’ demographics were also used in statistical analysis to find any association with the findings. Result: Sixty two physicians with different specialties, 70 warfarin users with AF and 44 warfarin users without AF were recruited in the present study. The average score of Hong Kong physicians in the knowledge of stroke prevention therapy in AF patients was lower than that of Australian family physicians (HK 2.48 vs. AUS 4.02 out of 7, p < 0.001). The mean scores of Hong Kong AF patients in the knowledge of AF were lower than that of UK (HK 1.16 vs. UK 2.24 out of 4, p < 0.001) and that of Finland (HK 2.77 vs. FIN 5.94 out of 8, p < 0.001) respectively. The mean score of Hong Kong AF patients in the knowledge of warfarin therapy was significantly lower than that of US AF patients (HK 2.39 vs. US 3.92, p < 0.001). Conclusion: Hong Kong physicians’ knowledge level of stroke prevention management was on average lower than Australian family physicians’, and Hong Kong patients’ knowledge of AF and warfarin therapy was in general poor, and poorer than that of UK and Finland patients, and US patients respectively. Interventions should be done to improve both physicians’ and patients’ knowledge in order to better utilize warfarin for AF patients.

Objective To assess the clinical and angiographic results of the first clinical application of a new balloon expandable stent, the NIR stent, characterised by high longitudinal flexibility and low profile before expansion, and by high radial support and minimal recoil and shortening after expansion. Design Single centre survey of unselected lesions in consecutive patients. Setting Tertiary referral centre. Patients and lesions 93 stents of various length (9, 16, and 32 mm) were implanted in 64 lesions in 41 patients. Twenty lesions (31%) were longer than 15 mm, and 17 lesions (27%) were located in vessels with a diameter smaller than 2.5 mm. Extreme tortuosity of the proximal vessel was present in 15 lesions (23%). All patients were treated with aspirin and ticlopidine. All lesions were evaluated before and after treatment by quantitative angiography, and in 47 lesions (75%) the stent expansion was also controlled by intracoronary ultrasound. Clinical follow up was available in all patients and angiographic follow up was performed in 53 lesions (84%), at a mean (SD) interval of 5.4 (1.7) months. Results Deployment of the stent failed in two lesions (3%). Minimum lumen diameter increased from 1.01 (0.54) mm to 2.94 (0.49) mm, and diameter stenosis decreased from 66(15)% to 7(11)%. There was one in-hospital non-Q wave myocardial infarction, one sudden death after 40 days, and 17 target lesion revascularisations (27%). Angiographic restenosis (≥ 50% diameter stenosis) was documented in 19 lesions (36% of all lesions with angiographic follow up), with an average residual diameter stenosis of 43(21)% and minimum lumen diameter of 1.63 (0.74) mm. Restenosis was more common in vessels with a reference diameter &lt; 2.5 mm (45%) and for lesions longer than 15 mm (46%). Conclusions The NIR stent could be used successfully in most lesions, achieving optimal angiographic results with very few in-hospital or subacute cardiac events. The angiographic restenosis rate and need for target lesion revascularisation remained high in this unfavourable lesion subset, especially in small vessels and long lesions.