Background: Legionella pneumophila (L. pneumophila) is gram-negative bacterium, which causes Legionnaires’ disease as well as Pontiac fever. Objective: To determine the frequency of Legionella pneumophila in pneumonic patients, to determine the clinical utility of diagnosing Legionella pneumonia by urinary antigen testing (LPUAT) in terms of sensitivity and specificity, to compares the results obtained from patients by urinary antigen test with q Real Time PCR (RT PCR) using serum samples and to determine the frequency of serogroup 1 and other serogroups of L. pneumophila. Methods: A total of 100 pneumonic patients (community acquired pneumonia) were enrolled in this study during a period between October 2016 to April 2017; 92 samples were collected from patients attended and admitted to Al-Imamein Al-Kadhimein Medical City and 8 samples from those in the (Center of Kidney Diseases and Transplantation) in the Medical City of Baghdad. All patients were under therapy with antibiotics. Serum and urine specimens were obtained from all patients; urine samples were processed for urinary antigen test (rapid test). Serum samples were collected and submitted to DNA extraction for detection of L. pneumophila mip gene by q RT PCR assay. Results: The percentage of L. pneumophila in two hospitals in Bagdad was 30%. Of these 26% was serogroup 1 detected by urinary antigen testing (UAT). In the other hand, 23% of samples were positive by q RT PCR based mip gene, of these 19 % were serogroup 1 and 4% were another serogroup. The sensitivity of UAT is high (P value < 0.001), which means statistically highly significance than q RT PCR. Conclusion: LPUAT is a rapid tool for early diagnosis of Legionella infection, which highlights the need of using this test in hospitals and health institutions and there is a high prevalence of L. pneumophila in Iraq that refer to the necessity of considering this microorganism point of view in future studies for detection and treatment in pneumonic patients. Keywords: L. pneumophila, mip gene, quantitative real time PCR, urinary antigen. Citation: Gauad SA, Abdulrahman TR, Muhamad AK, Jawad AA, Hassan JS. Clinical utility of urinary antigen test and molecular method for detection of Legionella pneumophila. Iraqi JMS. 2018; 16(2): 207-215. doi: 10.22578/IJMS.16.2.13
Nanotechnology extends the limits of molecular diagnostics to the nanoscale. This study describes some of the details of how the body interacts with nanoparticles. Biological tests measuring the presence or activity of selected substances become quicker, more sensitive, and more flexible when certain nanoscale particles are put to work as tags. Particular emphasis is placed on the effects of surface changes on body-borne particles, their transport within the body, and the dose-response effect. Other considerations include the definition of "persistent" in the context of therapy, FDA scientific committees, and the need for nanoparticle tracking. In short, there have been dramatic changes in molecular and genetic research findings, as well as
... Show MoreObjectives This study aimed to compare the clinical effectiveness of four aligning archwires: Superelastic Nickel-Titanium (Superelastic-NiTi), SmartArch, Copper-Nickel-Titanium (Cu-NiTi), and Speed Tubular coaxial-Nickel-Titanium (Tubular coaxial-NiTi), regarding the alignment efficiency, associated perception of pain, and possibility of inducing root resorption.
Materials and Methods This study includes two randomized clinical trials run in parallel. Patients with 5 to 9 mm of mandibular anterior teeth crowding according to Little's irregularity index (LII) who needed fixed orthodontic appliances without extraction were randomly assigned to four groups of
The treatment of migraine headache targets the neurovascular mechanism and involves the use of serotonin receptor antagonists. Some of these drugs are used for the treatment of acute attacks; while others are effective as prophylactic measures to decrease the duration and frequency of attacks. Pizotifen, a 5-HTA antagonist, is one of the prophylactic drugs for which the clinical use resulted in low outcomes in reducing migraine symptoms. Melatonin, a serotonin derived neurohormone, was reported to exert many functions like sleep induction, anti-inflammatory, neurovascular regulation, cytoprotection and modulation of neurotransmitter release. In the view of the involvement of serotonin in the pathophysiology of migraine a
... Show MoreIn this work, oral lesions belong to 17 patients, 7 males and 10 females. Their ages range between 15 and 45 years. Follow up was conducted after one day, 7 days, 14 days, one month, and finally 3 months postoperatively. The study lasted for 1.5 year. Surgical diode laser with wavelength of 810 ± 20 nm, with two power levels of 10 and 15 W were used in contact and in non-contact mode via optical fiber. The postoperative outcome revealed; greater haemostatic capability, dry, sealed wound and noticeable lack in pain sensation
This study aimed to compare the clinical effectiveness of four aligning archwires: Superelastic Nickel-Titanium (Superelastic-NiTi), SmartArch, Copper-Nickel-Titanium (Cu-NiTi), and Speed Tubular coaxial-Nickel-Titanium (Tubular coaxial-NiTi), regarding the alignment efficiency, associated perception of pain, and possibility of inducing root resorption.
This study includes two randomized clinical trials run in parallel. Patients with 5 to 9 mm of mandibular anterior teeth crowding according to Little's irregularity index (LII) who needed fixed orthodontic appliances without extraction were randomly assigned to four groups of aligning archwires (each trial with two groups): 0.014-inc
Tillage tools are subject to friction and low-stress abrasive wear processes with the potential deterioration of the desired soil quality, loss of mechanical weed efficacy, and downtime for replacing worn tools. Limited experimental methods exist to quantify investigate the effect of wear-resistant coatings on shape parameters of soil-engaging tools. ASTM standard sand/rubber wheel abrasion and pin-on-disk tests are not able to simulate wear characteristics of the complex shape of the tillage tools. Even though the tribology of tillage tools can be realistic from field tests, tillage wear tests under field conditions are expensive and often challenging to generate repeatable engineeri
Background: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of in vitro long-term simulation of oral conditions on the bond strength of PEEK CAD/CAM lingual retainers.
Material and methods: The sample consisted of 12 PEEK CAD/CAM retainers each composed of 2 centrally perforated 3x4mm pads joined by a connector. They were treated by 98% sulfuric acid for 1 minute and then conditioned with Single Bond Universal and bonded to the lingual surface of premolar teeth by 3M Transbond TM System. Half of the retainers were artificially aged using a 30-day water storage and 5000 thermocycling protocol before bond strength testing to compare with the non-aged specimens.
Results: The artificially aged retainers showed a marginally
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