Khoa Duy Dương

It was such an impressive international experience, right there in Vietnam, in South East Asia.

My name is Dương Duy Khoa (my given name is Khoa and my family name is Dương). I am from Saigon, Vietnam (officially called Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam). I am a physician and lecturer at the Department of Internal Medicine, University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ho Chi Minh City (UMP-HCMC).

It was my honour to receive the APSR Zimmerman Physiology Award. My study was "Multi-center study to adapt STOP-Bang questionnaire to Vietnamese population". It was a collaborative work of Ha Noi Medical University and UMP-HCM focusing on adapting an international tool for local people. My study revealed that a much lower BMI cut-off (25 kg/m²) should be used for screening of obstructive sleep apnea in Vietnam. I believe the spirit of collaboration and regional/ local relevance are two of the key features of the APSR among other international conferences in the field of respirology.

It was not my first time to visit Hanoi, but it was my first international respiratory conference organized right here in Vietnam. I was impressed by both the scale and the depth of the programme, by both the international and the regional nature of the conference. I learned a lot from other doctors and professors in the field. I acquired the information and experience that I knew would be applicable or relevant to my daily practice. I believe in the future development of the field in the Asia-Pacific region through the conference.

My wishes for the future conference are that we will have more research networking events and other educational events. For my study, I would love to collaborate with other researchers from the region to perform a meta-analysis. The aim is to find out the optimal cut-off of BMI and neck size for the Asia-Pacific region and to assess the role of craniofacial characteristic in diagnosing obstructive sleep apnea. Our region is blessed with many young and inspiring researchers.

I would like to express my deepest gratitude toward the APSR for many reasons. Thank you for choosing Vietnam as the host country for the APSR Congress 2019 and for giving me the opportunity and the honour to present my work. I would like to send my deepest gratitude to my professors and mentors: Dr Lê Thượng Vũ, Dr Trần Văn Ngọc, Dr Vũ Văn Giáp and Dr Ngô Quý Châu, for their support and guidance. Finally, I would like to say thank you to my family and my beloved ones.

Khoa Duy Dương

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Dr Ian Yang (left) and Dr Khoa Duy Dương (right)