Background: Despite the importance of vaccines in preventing COVID-19, the willingness to receive COVID-19 vaccines is lower among RA patients than in the general population. Objective: To determine the extent of COVID-19 knowledge among RA patients and their attitudes and perceptions of COVID-19 vaccines. Methods: A qualitative study with a phenomenology approach was performed through face-to-face, individual-based, semi-structured interviews in the Baghdad Teaching Hospital, Baghdad, Iraq, rheumatology unit. A convenient sample of RA patients using disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs was included until the point of saturation. A thematic content analysis approach was used to analyze the obtained data. Results: Twenty-five RA patients participated in this study. Regarding knowledge about COVID-19, most participants were able to define COVID-19, realize its contagious nature, and see the need for masks to get protection from this infection, while only a minority knew COVID-19 symptoms. Most participants obtained information about COVID-19 from TV programs and the public. Regarding COVID-19 vaccines, about 1/4 of the participants knew vaccine side effects, and only 12% of them had positive attitudes toward the vaccine. Additionally, 19 participants were unwilling to take the vaccine. The most common reasons behind this reluctance to take the vaccine include fear of the vaccine's short- and long-term side effects and the worsening of RA. Conclusion: RA patients' knowledge about COVID-19 and its vaccines was poor, and their attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccines were negative.
The objective of this study was to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare providers (HCPs) at personal and professional levels.
This was a cross-sectional descriptive study. It was conducted using an electronic format survey through Qualtrics Survey Software in English. The target participants were HCPs working in any healthcare setting across Iraq. The survey was distributed via two professional Facebook groups between 7 April and 7 May 2020. The survey items were adopted with modifications from three previous studies of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Avia
Thrombosis is a common clinical feature associated with morbidity and mortality in coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) patients. Cytokine storm in COVID-19 increases patients' systemic inflammation, which can cause multiple health consequences. In this work, we aimed to indicate the effect of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccination on the modulation of monocyte chemoattractant protein-3 (MCP-3), matrix metalloproteinase 1 (MMP-1), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) levels, and other systemic inflammatory biomarkers that associates with COVID-19 severity in patients who suffers from thrombosis consequences. For this purpose, ninety people were collected from Ibn Al-Nafees Hospital and divided into three groups each of which contained 30 people, 15
... Show MoreWith its rapid spread, the coronavirus infection shocked the world and had a huge effect on billions of peoples' lives. The problem is to find a safe method to diagnose the infections with fewer casualties. It has been shown that X-Ray images are an important method for the identification, quantification, and monitoring of diseases. Deep learning algorithms can be utilized to help analyze potentially huge numbers of X-Ray examinations. This research conducted a retrospective multi-test analysis system to detect suspicious COVID-19 performance, and use of chest X-Ray features to assess the progress of the illness in each patient, resulting in a "corona score." where the results were satisfactory compared to the benchmarked techniques. T
... Show MoreObjectives: The purpose of the study is to ascertain the relationship between the training program and the socio-demographic features of patients with peptic ulcers in order to assess the efficiency of the program on patients' nutritional habits.
Methodology: Between January 17 and October 30 of 2022, The Center of Gastrointestinal Medicine and Surgery at Al-Diwanyiah Teaching Hospital conducted "a quasi-experimental study". A non-probability sample of 30 patients for the case group and 30 patients for the control group was selected based on the study's criteria. The study instrument was divided into 4 sections: the first portion contained 7 questions about demographic information, the second sect
... Show MoreBackground Numerous studies indicated that workers in the health sector suffer from work stress, hassles, and mental health problems associated with COVID-19, which negatively affect the completion of their job tasks. These studies pointed out the need to search for mechanisms that enable workers to cope with job stress effectively. Objectives This study investigated psychological flow, mental immunity, and job performance levels among the mental health workforce in Saudi Arabia. It also tried to reveal the psychological flow (PF) and mental immunity (MI) predictability of job performance (JP). Method A correlational survey design was employed. The study sample consisted of 120 mental health care practitioners (therapists, psychologists, co
... Show MoreIn Iraq, because of the dramatic turnovers facing the country for three decades, pharmacists continue to experience significant professional challenges in both the public and private sectors. The present study aimed to explore the professional challenges and obstacles facing Iraqi pharmacists working in public hospitals. This qualitative study included face-to-face semi-structured interviews with open-ended questions with hospital pharmacists. The participants were selected purposefully (with ≥ 3 years of experience) to work at governmental hospitals in Karbala province between December 2022 and April 2023. The audio-recording interviews were scripted. Thematic analyses were used to generate themes and subthemes from the interview
... Show MoreBackground: Periodontal disease is a chronic bacterial infection that affects the gingiva and bone supporting the teeth. Smoking, which is an important risk factor for periodontitis, induce oxidative stress in the body and cause an imbalance between reactive oxygen species (ROS) and antioxidants, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD). This study aimed to evaluate the influence of smoking on periodontal health status by estimating the levels of salivary SOD level in non-smokers (controls) and light and heavy smokers and to test the correlation between the SOD enzyme level and the clinical periodontal parameters in each group. Materials and Methods: The study sample consisted of 75 male, with age ranged from 35 to 50 years. Clinically, the perio
... Show MoreIf the State attaches great importance to its foreign relations and intends to strengthen them in order to ensure the achievement of the highest national goals and interests. External relations between countries are one of the most prominent features of foreign policy, which depends on a combination of internal and external factors, the modern relations between Tunisia and Tunisia, which goes back to the pre-independence of Tunisia, when Iraq was a supporter of Tunisia's independence from France in the 1940s, Although these relations did not cause any disturbance by the two countries, but they remained weak relations did not develop in all areas except the sports and cultural field, which we will determine the reasons and the pos
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