Dr. Hai-Hua Chuang, M.D., Ph.D. is a distinguished physician-leader and researcher in family and community medicine, currently serving as Director of the Department of Community Medicine at Cathay General Hospital and Associate Professor at the Post-Baccalaureate Medical Program of National Tsing Hua University, Taiwan. She is widely recognized for her work in obesity medicine, adolescent health, precision health, and integrated community care.
Dr. Chuang earned her medical degree from Chang Gung University and completed a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering and Management at National Taipei University of Technology. She was a visiting scholar at Geisinger Medical Center in Pennsylvania, USA, where she further explored precision medicine approaches in chronic disease prevention.
With board certifications in obesity medicine, family medicine, adolescent health, osteoporosis management, and precision medicine, Dr. Chuang has contributed to more than 60 peer-reviewed publications and multiple award-winning public health projects. Her work bridges clinical innovation with public health implementation, particularly in workplace health promotion, school-based interventions, and digital health monitoring.
She holds leadership roles across numerous professional organizations, including the Taiwan Medical Association for the Study of Obesity, the Taiwan Health Literacy and Communication Association, and the International Hospital Federation (Young Executive Leader 2019). She has been a keynote speaker and presenter at global academic congresses in the U.S., Europe, and Asia.
Among her many honors are the “Top Ten Outstanding Young Women in Taiwan” award (2024), multiple National Quality and Innovation Awards, and the Chang Gung University Outstanding Alumni Award. She is also a regular columnist on "Precision Health" for Common Health magazine.
Dr. Chuang is a passionate advocate for integrating digital tools, lifestyle medicine, and community-centered strategies to achieve sustainable health for all ages.
21 MARCH
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13:30
15:00
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New Era in Weight Management
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Tomohiro TanakaJapan
Speaker
Brain Remodeling of Appetite Centers in Obesity - Results from Murine Omics Studies and Human Brain Imaging
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Alice KongHong Kong, China
Speaker
Obesity: What Clinicians Should KnowRapid changes in technology, human behavior and lifestyle over the past few decades have resulted in a dramatic increase in the prevalence of obesity worldwide. Besides social stigmata and psychological consequences, obesity is associated with escalated risks of type 2 diabetes, coined the term "Diabesity", hypertension, dyslipidemia, sleep apnoea, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), formerly known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), polycystic ovarian syndrome, cancers, cardiovascular diseases and increased mortality.
Body mass index (BMI) is a commonly adopted tool to identify people with obesity. Clinicians should note that the cutoff points of BMI for clinical actions are different between people with obesity from the East and the West, as well as the limitations of BMI in diagnosing obesity. Recently, the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology Commission proposed a new definition of obesity which differentiates excess adiposity with obesity-related illness (clinical obesity) from those without obesity-related diseases (pre-clinical obesity). Also, people with clinical obesity have many unmet needs requiring personalized treatment regimens, intensive counselling and emotional support. The 5 A's framework including Ask, Assess, Advise, Agree and Assist, provide a patient-centred approach to promote lasting behavioral change in obesity management.
In addition to lifestyle modifications and behavioral changes, pharmacological agents for weight reduction, bariatric and metabolic surgeries are therapeutic options requiring careful selections for the appropriate patients with adequate counselling of the risks and benefits. Through case sharing approach, the use of weight reducing drugs and surgical strategies for people with preclinical and clinical obesity will be discussed in this session.
Acknowledgement: The work described in this lecture was partially supported by funding from Health and Medical Research Fund (HMRF), Food and Health Bureau, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number:21223391), Matching Grant from Research Grants Council (reference number: 8601556), and Area of Excellence Scheme, Research Grants Council, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number: AoE/M-401/24-R). Obesity Management: What's New?Obesity is a global health hazard with rising prevalence in most parts of the world. Weight reduction by lifestyle modification remains the cornerstone in the prevention and treatment of obesity. However, weight management by lifestyle therapy alone is difficult to sustain in many obese individuals with rebound of body weight being observed as a common phenomenon. Given the invasiveness of bariatric and metabolic surgeries which are not accepted by many people with obesity, the use of pharmacological agents in weight management is increasingly popular.
In 2025, the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology Commission proposed a new definition of obesity which differentiates excess adiposity with obesity-related illness (clinical obesity) from those without obesity-related diseases (pre-clinical obesity). Among the various obesity complications, diabetes is well recognized to be closely related to obesity, with the term 'Diabesity' coined to show the strong link between these two important modifiable risk factors of cardiovascular disease and premature death. In recent decades, many new generation anti-diabetic drugs are developed and found to have weight reducing properties. Looking ahead, more new drugs are in the pipeline of clinical trials, and the results may eventually change the landscape of obesity management.
Acknowledgement: The work described in this lecture was partially supported by funding from Health and Medical Research Fund (HMRF), Food and Health Bureau, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number:21223391), Matching Grant from Research Grants Council (reference number: 8601556), and Area of Excellence Scheme, Research Grants Council, Hong Kong SAR, China (Reference number: AoE/M-401/24-R).
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3F Banquet Hall
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