Introduction: Although it is discouraged, community pharmacy customers can obtain oral corticosteroids (OCSs) without prescriptions from some community pharmacies in Iraq. Medication abuse is defined as the use of medication for non-medical reasons. Objectives: The study aimed to determine demographics, beliefs, and perceptions associated with the abuse of oral corticosteroids for non-illness reasons among community pharmacy customers. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in fall 2018 in four provinces in Iraq. Customers of 19 community pharmacies asking for OCSs for themselves without a prescription were administered a paper survey. This study used the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) to measure the relationship between the motivational factors and the abuse of OCSs. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to evaluate the relationships between the use of OCSs for non-illness and six TRA factors: Normative belief, behavioral belief, evaluation of the behavior, motivation to comply, subjective norms and attitude toward behavior. Results: The study enrolled 141 participants (98 women and 43 men) taking asking for OCSs without prescription. Dexamethasone was the most commonly used OCSs (59.6%). Friends were the primary recommenders for corticosteroids abuse (28.4%). The main reasons for using OCSs were to increase appetite and gain weight (53.9 %). Approximately one-third (36.2 %) of the participants gained weight after using OCSs. The regression analysis of the TRA variables showed two factors were significantly related to the abuse of OCSs. Age had a significant inverse relationship with the abuse of OCSs and the "good appearance" belief had a significant positive association with OCS abuse. Conclusion: Some Iraqi community pharmacy customers use non-prescribed oral corticosteroids to increase appetite and gain weight. Improve body appearance represents the dominant incentive that urges people to use OCSs without prescription. Health officials and healthcare practitioners need to promote people's awareness about the risks of misusing OCSs through education programs and advertisements in public health settings, media, and social media. Article Type: Original Research
Since the emergence of the science of international relations as an independent academic scientific field, various theories and trends have appeared and have tried to understand and explain the international reality and give a clear picture of what is happening within the international system of interactions and influences and the search for tools for stability and peace in international relations. Among these theories is the feminist theory, which is a new intellectual trend on the level of international relations theories, which tried to give an explanation of what is happening in world politics and in international relations in particular. The main issue that feminist theory is concerned with is the lack of women’s subordination
... Show MoreThe unemployment is considered from the most danger problems that our society face them in current time & in the near future , because it makes prodigality for element of human being , particularly age of youth who have ability to work & producing , that resulted in negative effects forecast to dire consequences social and economical dangers . In the same time as will be stated in our explanation in the following in our research , because the unemployment has ability to help to prepare good environment to grow crime , actions of violence that mostly are main cause to decrease living level of majority of citizens & in increasing numbers who became under poverty , the unemployment is economical problem as it is psycholo
... Show MoreAbstract
The research examined with the importance banking merger to address the situation of Troubled banks in Iraq, Through The use of Logistic Regression Model. . The study attempted to present a conceptual aspect of banking merger and logistic regression, as well as the applied aspect which includes a sample consisting of six private Iraqi banks, and the hypothesis of the study is that the promotion of mergers among banks has positive impacts on improving the efficiency of performance of troubled banks, which contributes to the increase of banking services, raise of their financial indicators and the high liquidity and profits of the new banking entity as it is a way to overcome the prevailing banking crises.
... Show MoreIn this research, the possibility of using waste wooden materials (reed and sawdust) was studied to produce sustainable and thermal insulation lightweight building units , which has economic and environmental advantages. This study is intended to produce light weight building units with low thermal conductivity, so it can be used as partitions to improve the thermal insulation in buildings. Waste wooden materials were used as a partial replacement of natural sand, in different percentages (10, 20, 30, and 40) % . The mix proportions were (1:2.5) (cement: fine aggregate) with w/c of 0.4. The values of 28 days oven dry density ranged between (2060-1693) kg/m3.The thermal conductivity decreased from (0.745 to 0.2
... Show MoreIn IRAQ, the air conditioners are the principal cause of high electrical demand. In summer, the outer temperature sometimes exceeds 500C which significantly effects on the A/C system performance and power consumed. In the present work, the improvement in mechanical and electrical performance of split A/C system is investigated experimentally and analytically. In this paper, performance and energy saving enhancement of a split-A/C system was experimentally investigated to be efficiently compatible with elevated temperature weathers. This improvement is accomplished via Smart Control System integrate with Proportional-Integral- Differential PID algorithm. The PIC16F877A micro-controller has been programmed with the PID and PWM c
... Show MoreAlthough the number of stomach tumor patients reduced obviously during last decades in western countries, but this illness is still one of the main causes of death in developing countries. The aim of this research is to detect the area of a tumor in a stomach images based on fuzzy clustering. The proposed methodology consists of three stages. The stomach images are divided into four quarters and then features elicited from each quarter in the first stage by utilizing seven moments invariant. Fuzzy C-Mean clustering (FCM) was employed in the second stage for each quarter to collect the features of each quarter into clusters. Manhattan distance was calculated in the third stage among all clusters' centers in all quarters to disclosure of t
... Show MoreThe public budget is on the same time an art and a science .As an accountable science it seeks balance between public income and public expenditure for an accountable year. And as an accountable art it seeks to achieve economic balance by distributing equitable income in order to reach sustainable development .This is the optimal use of all natural and human resources to address scarcity of natural resources facing the increase need of human resources by spending on education, health, environment, housing, agriculture and industry to achieve social justice for the current generation and future generations. Since the first budget in Iraq on 1921 an accounting budget, is balancing the sections and items has been adopted and since the publi
... Show MoreAs is known that the consumer price index (CPI) is one of the most important price indices because of its direct effect on the welfare of the individual and his living.
We have been address the problem of Strongly seasonal commodities in calculating (CPI) and identifying some of the solution.
We have used an actual data for a set of commodities (including strongly seasonal commodities) to calculate the index price by using (Annual Basket With Carry Forward Prices method) . Although this method can be successfully used in the context of seasonal&nbs
... Show MoreObjective(s): To assess the effect of removable partial dentures on the abutment teeth in comparison with that of the
remaining dentition, and to investigate the effect of regular check up on periodontal health for patients using this
type of prosthesis.
Methodology: One hundred patients wearing removable partial dentures for at least three years included in the
study. Teeth used as direct or in direct retainers for the removable partial denture were considered as the study
group, while the remaining dentition in the same jaw was considered as the control group. The following periodontal
parameters were registered for each tooth, plaque and gingival indices, clinical attachment level and tooth mobility.
Patients were