MBBS(HK), FRCS (Edinburgh), FHKCOS, FHKAM (Orthopaedic Surgery)

Clinical Associate Professor

Honorary Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon

• Biography
• Clinical Interests
• Clinical Research
• Basic Science Research
• Representative publications
• Professional achievement
• Honor and Award
• Educational videos

Dr. WP Yau is a Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Hong Kong. He held the position of the President of the Hong Kong College of Orthopedic Surgeons (HKCOS), the official organization responsible for training orthopedic specialists and conducting professional examinations in orthopedic surgery in Hong Kong. Dr. Yau also previously served as the Chief of the Division of Sports and Arthroscopic Surgery in the Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, The University of Hong Kong from 2008 to 2021.

Dr. Yau began his medical education at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) in 1987 and obtained his medical degree in 1992. Following his medical internship in 1993, Dr. Yau underwent general surgical training at Queen Mary Hospital (QMH) in Hong Kong and received the Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) in 1997. He then entered the orthopedic training program at the Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, QMH. Dr. Yau completed his orthopedic residency training in 2000 and excelled in the fellowship examination that same year, and was awarded the gold medal in the conjoint examination in orthopedic surgery jointly administered by HKCOS and RCSEd. In 2001, he was honored with the titles of Fellow of the HKCOS and Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine.

Joining HKU in 2007, Dr. Yau was appointed Chief of the Division of Sports and Arthroscopic Surgery in the Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, QMH, in 2008. He was promoted to Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology at HKU in 2013. Dr. Yau served the University of Hong Kong as a member of the Senate from 2019 to 2022.

Specializing in Sports Medicine and Adult Joint Reconstruction Surgery, Dr. Yau’s research interests focus on clinical outcome studies in these areas. His work has resulted in over 75 peer-reviewed articles, 2 book chapters, and 65 conference papers. Dr. Yau has delivered more than 90 invited lectures and nearly 185 presentations at various national and international orthopedic conferences.

A prominent figure in the orthopedic community in Hong Kong, Dr. Yau served as the President of the Hong Kong College of Orthopedic Surgeons in 2019 and 2020. He has also been serving as President of the Sports Medicine Chapter of the Hong Kong Orthopedic Association (HKOA) in 2013 to 2014. Additionally, Dr. Yau held the position of Chief examiner for the conjoint examination in orthopedic surgery jointly administered by HKCOS and RCSEd in 2021 and 2022.

Throughout his career, Dr. Yau has received numerous awards, including the Author Yau Award from the HKOA in 1994 and 2004, the David Fang Trophy from the HKOA in 2004, the Harry Fang Gold Medal Award from the HKCOS in 2000, and the Japan Orthopedics and Traumatology Foundation Fellowship Award in 2008. He has also been recognized with awards such as the Best Sports Medicine Paper Award from the HKOA in 2010, 2016, 2019, 2023, and 2024, as well as the Orthopedic Basic Science Award from the HKOA in 2014. Dr. Yau has represented the Hong Kong Orthopedic Association at various international conferences and events.

In addition to his academic and clinical responsibilities, Dr. Yau actively contributed to orthopedic education. He has held various leadership roles, including Training Director of the Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology at HKU from 2008 to 2012, and served as the Chairman of the Education Committee at HKCOS in 2015 and 2016. Dr. Yau has also played a key role in organizing regular international educational events, such as the annual SICOT Educational Day held between 2011 and 2018, where he served as Chairman of the SICOT Educational Day Committee in 2018.

Dr. WP Yau currently serves as the Deputy editor of the Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research and is a member of the editorial board of the American Journal of Sports Medicine.

• Sports medicine
• Knee surgery
• Patellar surgery
• Shoulder surgery
• Hip surgery
• Minimal invasive surgery
• Computer navigation surgery

• Impact of smoking on anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction and rotator cuff repair
• Development of new surgical techniques for knee and shoulder surgery
• Combined anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction and anterolateral ligament reconstruction
• Osteometry of Chinese and its impact on orthopaedic disease and intervention
• Computer-assisted navigation in orthopaedic surgery

• Role of Strontium in interfacial tissue engineering in tendon healing and ligament reconstruction
• Biomechanical study of a new arthroscopic knot – “HK-knot”
• Feature based 2D-3D registration and 3D reconstruction via statistical inference for image-guided interventions

• Rotator cuff repairs using double-row modified Mason-Allen stitches resulted in superior clinical outcomes at two-year follow-up compared to the double-row suture-bridge technique – a case-control matching study

  WP Yau. 

  Arthroscopy, Sports Medicine, Rehabilitation, 2024; Articles in Press. September 10, 2024.

  doi: 10.1016/j.asmr.2024.100997

• Minimizing unnecessary harvesting of an extremely thin gracilis tendon during anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction by referencing the diameter of a doubled semitendinosus tendon alone

  WP Yau. 

  Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine, 2024; ACCEPTED.

• Comparison of medial hamstring length between harvesting methods using anterior and posterior approaches.

  WP Yau.

  Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine, 2024; ACCEPTED.

• Differences in clinical outcomes between patients with retear after supraspinatus tendon repair and those with intact repair at 5-year follow-up.

  WP Yau.

  American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2024; 52(4):1040-1052.

  doi: 10.1177/03635465241227643.

• Evaluation of graft maturation by MRI in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with and without concomitant anterolateral ligament reconstruction.

  WP Yau, W Lin.

  Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine, 2024; 12(1): 23259671231223976 .

  doi: 10.1177/23259671231223976

• Smokers achieved minimal clinically important difference for visual analog scale and American shoulder and elbow surgeons scores at a lower rate than nonsmokers even when repaired supraspinatus tendons were intact on postoperative magnetic resonance imaging.

  WP Yau.

  Arthroscopy, Sports Medicine, and Rehabilitation, 2024; 6(2):100877.

  doi: 10.1016/j.asmr.2023.100877.

• Modification of outside-in technique in preparing femoral tunnel during anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction – “PL-portal outside-in technique”.

  WP Yau.

  Arthroscopy Techniques, 2024; 2024; 13(1):102811.

  doi: 10.1016/j.eats.2023.08.016.

• Evaluation of graft ligamentization in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction by MRI.

  WP Yau, Yat-Chi Chan.

  American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2023;51(6):1466-1479.

  doi: 10.1177/03635465231160790.

• Repair of meniscus root tear – Is there a difference between medial meniscus root repair and lateral meniscus root repair? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

  JR Khoo, WP Yau.

  Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery, 2023; 31(2):  10225536231175233

  doi:10.1177/10225536231175233

• The Hong Kong College of Orthopaedic Surgeons.  Position statement in management of osteoarthritis of knee. 

  WP Yau, CK Chiu, SMH Cheung and AYL Cheung

  The Hong Kong College of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 2022;

  https://www.hkcos.org.hk/Position_Statement/HKCOS_Position_Statement_OA_KNEE_20221201.pdf.   Published on 10 August 2022

• Association of smoking with graft rupture after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

  Yat-Chi Chan, WP Yau

  Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine, 2022; 10(10): 23259671221127244

  doi: 10.1177/23259671221127244

• CORR Insights: No benefit to sensor-guided balancing compared with freehand balancing in TKA: a randomized controlled trial.

  WP Yau 

  Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, 2022; 480:1545-1546.

  doi: 10.1097/CORR.0000000000002206.

• Anterior Knee Endoscopy
  TL Choi, TH Lui, PWP Yau and GCN Leung.
  Endoscopy of the Hip and Knee. Principle and Practice. P 161-182, 2021, Springer, ISBN 978-981-16-3487-1

• CORR Insights: No difference in Blood Loss and Risk of Transfusion Between Patients Treated with One or Two Doses of Intravenous Tranexamic Acid After Simultaneous Bilateral TKA
  WP Yau.
  Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, 2022; 480(4):712-713.

  doi: 10.1097/CORR.0000000000002090.

• Prioritized challenges in the management of acute knee dislocations are stiffness, obesity, treatment delays and associated limb-threatening injuries: a global consensus study.

  M Held, RC Schenck, V Khanduja, TVDO Campos, S Tapasvi, A Williams, WP Yau, Harner C, Knee surgery in LRS. 

  Journal of ISAKOS, 2021; 6(4):193-198.

  doi: 10.1136/jisakos-2020-000565.

• Protecting healthcare workers from COVID-19: learning from variation in practice and policy identified through a global cross-sectional survey
  Z Hussain, H Shorman, PWP Yau, G Thevendran, F Randelli, MZ Zhan, MS Kocher, A Norrish and V Khanduja.
  Bone and Joint Journal Open, 1(5):144-151.

  doi: 10.1302/2633-1462.15.BJO-2020-0024.R1

• Management of traumatic patellar dislocation in a regional hospital in Hong Kong.
  HL Lee and WP Yau.
  Hong Kong Medical Journal, 2017, 23(2): 122-8.
  doi: 10.12809/hkmj164872

• Simultaneous pose estimation and patient-specific reconstruction from single image using maximum penalized likelihood estimation (MPLE)
  Kang X, Yau WP and Taylor RH.
  Pattern Recognition, 2016; 57:61-69.
  doi: 10.1016/j.patcog.2016.03.025

• Prevalence of Radiographic Parameters Predisposing to Femoracetabular Impingement in Young Asymptomatic Chinese and White Subjects.
  JV Houcke, WP Yau, CH Yan, W Huysse, WH Lau, CS Wong, C Pattyn and EA Audenaert.
  Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery Am, 2015, 97A:310-7.
  doi: 10.2106/JBJS.M.01538

• Strontium exerts dual effects on calcium phosphate cement: accelerating the degradation and enhancing the osteoconductivity both in vitro and in vivo.
  GM Kuang, WP Yau, J Wu, et al.
  Journal of Biomedical Materials Research: Part A, 2015, 103(5): 1613-21
  doi: 10.1002/jbm.a.35298

• Anterior cruciate ligament tear in Hong Kong Chinese patients.
  AWM Fok and WP Yau.
  Hong Kong Medical Journal, 2015, 21(2):131-5.
  doi: 10.12809/hkmj134124

• Local application of Strontium in a Calcium Phosphate Cement System Accelerates Healing in Soft Tissue Tendon Graft in Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction – a Rabbit Experiment.
  GM Kuang and WP Yau.
  American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2014, 42(12): 2996-3001
  doi: 10.1177/0363546514549536

• Femoral Radiographic Landmarks for Popliteus Tendon Reconstruction and Repair – A New Method of Reference.
  AWM Fok, GM Kuang and WP Yau.
  American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2014, 42(2):394-398.
  doi: 10.1177/0363546513510388

• Associations between Isolated bundle tear of Anterior Cruciate Ligament, Time from Injury to Surgery, and Clinical Tests.
  AWM Fok and WP Yau.
  Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery, 2014, 22(2):209-13.
  doi: 10.1177/230949901402200219

• Robustness and accuracy of feature-based single image 2D-3D registration without correspondences for image-guided intervention
  X Kang, M Armand, Y OTake, WP Yau, PYS Cheung, Y Hu and RH Taylor.
  IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 2014, 61(1):149-161
  doi: 10.1109/TBME.2013.2278619

• Computer-assisted bone tumour ablation using sparse radiographs.

  Xin Kang, Ren H, Li J, Yau WP.

  Advanced Robotics, 2014 Jan;28(5):303-315

  doi:  10.1080/01691864.2013.867286

• Use of a Strontium-enriched Calcium Phosphate Cement in Accelerating the Healing of Soft Tissue Tendon Graft Within the Bone Tunnel in a Rabbit Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction Model.
  GM Kuang, WP Yau, WW Lu and KY Chiu.
  Bone and Joint Journal, 2013, 95B(7):923-8.
  doi: 10.1302/0301-620X.95B7.30748

• Tunnel Positions in Transportal Versus Transtibial Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction: A Case-Control Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study.
  WP Yau, AWM Fok and DKH Yee.
  Arthroscopy, 2013, 29(6):1047-1052.
  doi: 10.1016/j.arthro.2013.02.010

• Distal femur rotation relates to joint obliquity in ACL deficient Chinese.
  WP Yau, KY Chiu, AWM Fok, CH Yan and FY Ng.
  Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, 2013, 471:1458-1464.
  doi: 10.1007/s11999-012-2698-4

• Delay in ACL reconstruction is associated with more severe and painful meniscal and chondral injuries.
  August WM Fok and WP Yau.
  Knee Surgery Sports Traumatology Arthroscopy, 2013; 21:928-933.
  doi: 10.1007/s00167-012-2027-1

• Early Results of all-inside meniscal repairs using a pre-loaded suture anchor.
  AWM Fok and WP Yau.
  Hong Kong Medical Journal, 2013, 19(2):124-8.
  https://www.hkmj.org/abstracts/v19n2/124.htm

• A Simple and novel hybrid robotic system for robot-assisted femur fracture reduction

  Ye R, Chen Y and WP Yau.

  Advanced Robotics, 2012, 26(1-2):83-104.

  doi: 10.1163/016918611X607383

• An effective approach by a chelate reaction in optimizing the setting process of strontium-incorporated calcium phosphate bone cement.
  GM Kuang, WP Yau, WM Lam, Jun Wu, KY Chiu, WW Lu and H Pan.
  Journal of Biomedical Materials: Part B – Applied Biomaterials, 2012, 100B(3): 778-787.
  doi: 10.1002/jbm.b.32511

• Osteointegration of soft tissue grafts within the bone tunnels in Anterior Cruciate Ligament reconstruction can be enhanced.
  GM Kuang, WP Yau and W Lu.

  Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy, 2010, 18:1038-1051.
  doi: 10.1007/s00167-009-0910-1

• Osteoconductive bone cement enhances tendon-bone healing in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.
  GM Kuang, WP Yau, FL Lim, KY Chiu and WW Lu.

  Orthopaedic Journal of China, 18 (16):1349-1353, August 2010.

• Inter- and Intra-observer Error in Distal femur Transepicondylar Axis Measurement by using Computerized Tomogram.

  WH Lie, WP Yau, KY Chiu, HB Leung, LS Wong and S Wong.

  Journal of Arthroplasty, 2009, 24(1): 96-100.

  doi: 10.1016/j.arth.2007.11.014

• Errors in Identification of the Distal Femur Transepicondylar and Anterior Posterior Axes in Minimal Incision TKR and Conventional Incision TKR – A Cadaveric Study.
  WP Yau, A Leung, KG Liu, CH Yan, LLS Wong and KY Chiu.
  Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (British), 2008, 90B:520-6.

  doi: 10.1302/0301-620X.90B4.19841

• Computer navigation did not improve alignment in a lower-volume total knee practice.
  WP Yau, KY Chiu, Zuo JL, WM Tang and TP Ng.
  Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, 2008, 466(4):935-45.

  doi: 10.1007/s11999-008-0144-4

• Cutting Errors in Total Knee Replacement: Assessment by Computer Assisted Surgery.
  WP Yau and KY Chiu.
  Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy, 2008, 16(7):670-3

  doi: 10.1007/s00167-008-0550-x

• Inter-observer and Intra-observer Error in Obtaining Transepicondylar Axis and Whiteside Line in Total Knee Arthroplasty

  CH Yan, WP Yau, TP Ng, WH Lie, KY Chiu and WM Tang.

  Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery, 2008, 16(3):316-20.

  doi: 10.1177/230949900801600310

• The accuracy of extramedullary guides for tibial component placement in total knee arthroplasty.
  KY Chiu, WP Yau, TP Ng and WM Tang.
  International Orthopaedics, 2008, 32(4): 467 – 471.

  doi: 10.1007/s00264-007-0354-5

• Comparison of range of motion after standard and high-flexion posterior stabilized total knee replacement.
  FY Ng, HL Wong, WP Yau, KY Chiu and WM Tang.
  International Orthopaedics, 2008, 32:795-8.

  doi: 10.1007/s00264-007-0409-7

• Coronal Bowing of the Femur and Tibia in Chinese – Its Incidence and Effects on Total Knee Arthroplasty Planning

  WP Yau, KY Chiu, WM Tang and TP Ng

  Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery, 2007; 15:32-36

  doi: 10.1177/230949900701500108

• Inter-observer and Intra-observer Errors in Obtaining Visually Selected Anatomical Landmarks During Registration Process in Non-Image-Based Navigation-Assisted Total Knee Arthroplasty.
  WP Yau, A Leung, KG Liu, CH Yan, LLS Wong and KY Chiu.
  Journal of Arthroplasty, 2007, 22:1150-1161

  doi: 10.1016/j.arth.2006.10.010

• How Precise is the Determination of Rotational Alignment of the Femoral Prosthesis in Total Knee Arthroplasty. An in vivo Study.
  WP Yau, KY Chiu and WM Tang.
  Journal of Arthroplasty, 2007, 22:1042-1048

  doi: 10.1016/j.arth.2006.12.043

• Navigated High Tibial Osteotomy with Vector Vision System
  KW Cheung, WP Yau, KH Chiu and KY Chiu.
  Navigation and MIS in Orthopaedic Surgery. P. 509-516, 2007, Springer; ISBN:978-3-540-36690-4

• Assessment of the proximal femoral morphology using plain radiograph – Can it predict the bone quality?
  Y Yeung, KY Chiu, WP Yau, WM Tang, WY Cheung, TP Ng.
  Journal of Arthroplasty, 2006; 21:508-513

  doi: 10.1016/j.arth.2005.04.037

• Intra-observer errors in identification of visually selected anatomic landmarks in non-image based computer navigation total knee replacement system – A cadaveric experiment.
  WP Yau, A Leung, KY Chiu, WM Tang and TP Ng.
  Journal of Arthroplasty, 2005; 20:591-601

  doi: 10.1016/j.arth.2005.02.011

• Residual Posterior Femoral Condyle Osteophyte – Will it affect Flexion Range after Total Knee Replacement?
  WP Yau, K.Y. Chiu, W.M. Tang and T.P. Ng.
  International Orthopaedics, 2005; 29:375-379

  doi: 10.1007/s00264-005-0010-x

• Sagittal bowing at distal femur and total knee arthroplasty.
  WM Tang, MFY Kwan, KY Chiu, TP Ng, WP Yau.
  Journal of Orthopaedic Research, 2005; 23:41-45

  doi:10.1016/j.orthres.2004.06.013

• Factors leading to blood transfusion among Chinese patients undergoing total joint replacements:  A retrospective study. 

  WP Yau, W. M. Tang, T. P. Ng and K. Y. Chiu.

  Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery, 2004; Vol 12:153-157

  doi: 10.1177/230949900401200203

• Critical Radiological Analysis After Austin Moore Hemiarthroplasty.
  WP Yau, K. Y. Chiu.
  Injury, 2004; Vol. 35 Issue 10:1020-1024

  doi: 10.1016/j.injury.2003.08.016

• Extensively coated femoral components in revision hip arthroplasty:  follow-up study of 23 patients.

  FY Ng, KY Chiu, WP Yau, TP Ng and WM Tang.

  Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery, 2004; Vol 12:168-172

  doi: 10.1177/230949900401200206

• Posterior Cruciate Ligament-Substituting Total Knee Arthroplasty in Young Rheumatoid Patients with Advanced Knee Involvement
  WM Tang, KY Chiu, TP Ng and WP Yau.
  Journal of Arthroplasty, 2004; Vol. 19 No.1: 49-55

  doi: 10.1016/j.arth.2003.08.009

• Patellar Clunk Syndrome after Posterior Stabilized Total Knee Replacement.
  WP Yau, JWK Wong, KY Chiu, TP Ng and WM Tang.
  Journal of Arthroplasty, 2003; Vol. 18 No. 8: 1023-1028

  doi: 10.1016/s0883-5403(03)00447-9.

• Efficacy of a single dose of Cefazolin as a prophylactic antibiotic in primary arthroplasty.
  WM Tang, KY Chiu, TP Ng, WP Yau, PTY Ching and WH Seto.
  Journal of Arthroplasty, 2003; Vol. 18 No. 6: 714-718

  doi: 10.1016/S0883-5403(03)00201-8

• Practicing Cementing Technique with a toy: Play-Doh.
  WM Tang, KY Chiu, TP Ng and WP Yau.
  Journal of Arthroplasty, 2003; Vol. 18 No. 6: 799-800

  doi: 10.1016/S0883-5403(03)00329-2

• Twenty-Year Follow-up of Hip Problems in Arthrogryposis Multiplex Congenita.
  WP Yau, Wang Chow, Yun Hoi Li and John CY Leong.
  Journal of Pediatric Orthopaedics, 2002; 22: 358-363

• Knee flexion after total knee arthroplasty

  KY Chiu, TP Ng, WM Tang, WP Yau

  Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery, 2002; 10(2): 194 -202

  doi: 10.1177/230949900201000215

• Arthroscopic treatment of patellar symptoms in posterior stabilized total knee replacement.
  JWK Wong, PWP Yau, PKY Chiu
  International Orthopaedics, 2002; 26:250-252
  doi: 10.1007/s00264-002-0347-3

• Unusual Complication Associated with Femoral Intramedullary Guide in Total Knee Arthroplasty

  Yau WP, Ng TP and KY Chiu

  Journal of Arthroplasty, 2001;  16:247-249

  doi: 10.1054/arth.2001.19161

• The performance of three vacuum-mixing cement guns – a comparison of the fatigue properties of the cement.
  WP Yau­, TP Ng, KY Chiu, KC Poon, WY Ho and DK Luk.
  International Orthopaedics (SICOT), 2001; 25:290-293

  doi: 10.1007/s002640100266

• Orthopaedic Guidelines to Houseofficer.
  WP Yau.
  Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Queen Mary Hospital.  (Internal circulation).

• Handbook of Orthopaedic Traumatology.
  WP Yau
  Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Queen Mary Hospital.  (Internal circulation).