There are countries close to Hong Kong in the Asia that are less affluent and with very different injury patterns. There are a great number of patients who suffer from cervical spine injuries by various causes. They may die for the injuries if there is not adequate resuscitation and treatment. For those who survive, they may not have the rehabilitation team to bring them back to their maximal functional capacity. They must rely on care takers for all their activities of daily living and became a burden to their family and their society. By hosting this conference, we can serve a platform for knowledge exchange among doctors and allied health members.
For these patients with very little function, a small improvement in the upper limb means a lot. This may be a major step for them to gain control of their life and provide an opportunity for them to be constructive to the society. We want to bring the message that something can be done to change the life of tetraplegic patients to hand surgeons, to the rehabilitation team and patient group.