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
The research involves using phenol – formaldehyde (Novolak) resin as matrix for making composite material, while glass fiber type (E) was used as reinforcing materials. The specimen of the composite material is reinforced with (60%) ratio of glass fiber.
The impregnation method is used in test sample preparation, using molding by pressure presses.
All samples were exposure to (Co60) gamma rays of an average energy (2.5)Mev. The total doses were (208, 312 and 728) KGy.
The mechanical tests (bending, bending strength, shear force, impact strength and surface indentation) were performed on un irradiated and irrad
... Show MoreAge, hypertension, and diabetes can cause significant alterations in arterial structure and function, including changes in lumen diameter (LD), intimal-medial thickness (IMT), flow velocities, and arterial compliance. These are also considered risk markers of atherosclerosis and cerebrovascular disease. A difference between right and left carotid artery blood flow and IMT has been reported by some researchers, and a difference in the incidence of nonlacunar stroke has been reported between the right and left brain hemispheres. The aim of this study was to determine whether there are differences between the right and left common carotid arteries and internal carotid arteries in patient
This study concerns the role of activated carbon (AC) from palm raceme as a support material for the enhancement of lipase-catalyzed reactions in an aqueous solution, with deep eutectic solvent (DES) as a co-solvent. The effects of carbonization temperature, impregnation ratio, and carbonization time on lipase activity were studied. The activities of Amano lipase from Burkholderia cepacia (AML) and lipase from the porcine pancreas (PPL) were used to investigate the optimum conditions for AC preparation. The results showed that AC has more interaction with PPL and effectively provides greater enzymatic activity compared with AML. The optimum treatment conditions of AC samples that yield the highest enzymatic activity were 0.5 (NaOH (
... Show MoreBackground: Antimicrobial prescribing patterns have an important role in the emergence of resistance, and community pharmacists have a substantial influence on this issue. Objective: To assess community pharmacists' behaviors and attitudes toward antimicrobial dispensing, determine their proportions and categories, and examine the underlying rationales for this practice. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional survey of community pharmacists in Iraq was conducted from June to August 2023, using a self-administered validated questionnaire. The attitudes, practices, and motivations driving the distribution of antimicrobials without a prescription (AWP) were explored in three areas. Results: A sizable proportion (61.6%) of respondents rejected
... Show MoreThe present work aimed to make a comparative investigation between three different ionospheric models: IRI-2020, ASAPS and VOACAP. The purpose of the comparative study is to investigate the compatibility of predicting the Maximum Usable Frequency parameter (MUF) over mid-latitude region during the severe geomagnetic storm on 17 March 2015. Three stations distributed in the mid-latitudes were selected for study; these are (Athens (23.50o E, 38.00o N), Jeju (124.53o E, 33.6o N) and Pt. Arguello (239.50o W, 34.80o N). The daily MUF outcomes were calculated using the tested models for the three adopted sites, for a span of five-day (the day of the event and two days preceding and following the event day). The calculated datasets were co
... Show MoreIt is the grace of God and his grace that he accepts repentance for his slaves, forgives their bad deeds in return for their misfortune, or offers them a good deed, but pardons many of them for free. Therefore, it is not long for God Almighty to forgive His mercy for many of His slaves and bring them to Paradise with no punishment or punishment, even if they have committed some sins, because of the multitude of their favorable navigational disadvantages, or even without gratitude thanks to him and him. With all this, some have overlooked the old and new on these things and amazed at the hadeeth ((God may have seen the people of the full moon and said do what you want, I have forgiven you)). Therefore, the scholars tried to answer some of
... Show MoreAs the prices of the fuel and power had fluctuated many times in the last decade and new policies appeared and signed by most of the world countries to eliminate global warming and environmental impact on the earth surface and humanity exciting, an urgent need appeared to develop the renewable energy harnessing technologies on the short-term and long-term and one of these promising technologies are the vertical axis wind turbines, and mostly the combined types. The purpose of the present work is to combine a cavity type Savonius with straight bladed Darrieus to eliminate the poor self-starting ability for Darrieus type and low performance for Savonius type and for this purpose, a three-bladed Darrieus type with symmetric
... Show MoreThe study aimed to reveal the obstacles of administrative creativity among the leaders of secondary schools (the curriculum system) in the northern border region, which relate to the obstacles (organizational, motivational, and psychological). In addition, to identify the most important statistical differences between the responses of the members of the study sample, which attribute to the variables (educational qualification, year’s Administrative expertise). To achieve the goal of the study, the researcher used the descriptive analytical approach, and to verify the validity of the tool, it has presented to several referees and faculty members in the educational field. The validity of the internal consistency was also calculated for t
... Show MoreThe Fourth Industrial Revolution represents an advanced stage of technological development, characterized by the integration of digital, physical, and biological technologies, with a strong focus on smart connectivity and advanced data analysis. At the core of this revolution stands Artificial Intelligence (AI), which enables the processing of vast amounts of data, decision-making with speed and accuracy, automation of processes, and enhancement of productivity and quality. This research examines the transformative role of AI in the humanities, particularly in archaeological, historical, and geographical studies, where traditional methods face limitations in handling complex and extensive datasets.The study aims to highlight these l
... Show MoreThe bubbled slab, a type of reinforced concrete (RC) slab with plastic voids, is an innovative design that employs a biaxial distribution of voiding formers within the slab to reduce the slab’s self-weight while preserving a load-carrying capacity that is approximately comparable to that of solid slabs. This paper presents a new approach for figuring out the effective critical shear perimeter of voided slabs using the reduced-volume concept of concrete. This approach aims to reduce the coefficient of variation of the current design standards, namely the ACI 318-19 and Eurocode 2, for assessing the slabs’ resistance to punching shear. Our experimental program investigated the impact of voiding former patterns and the location of
... Show More