Background: Occupational exposure to hazardous drugs occurs in all aspects of anticancer drug handling. Proper recommendations and guidelines should be applied to control and reduce exposure. Objective: To assess pharmacists' knowledge and practice regarding the safe handling of anticancer drugs. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at seven major hospitals in Baghdad City, Iraq, from December 2023 to February 2024. A pre-designed questionnaire was given to pharmacists who handled anticancer drugs in chemotherapy units. The questionnaire comprises sociodemographic data, knowledge of the safe handling of cytotoxic drugs and thoughts about exposure and risk, practices for safely handling cytotoxic drugs, and challenges for safely handling cytotoxic drugs. Results: A total of 126 pharmacists were enrolled in the study. Less than half of the participants (46%) received training on anticancer drugs. While more than a third (42.9%) of the pharmacists were handling more than 100 cytotoxic preparations weekly, the total knowledge score was 7.14, while the total practice score was 73.36, with less than half of the pharmacists having good knowledge (44.44%) or practice (48.41%). Pharmacists who received training had significantly higher total practice scores than those who did not. Pharmacists with more than 100 weekly preparations were more knowledgeable than those with 50–99 preparations. Conclusions: The majority of participating pharmacists had fair to excellent knowledge and practice regarding the safe handling of cytotoxic medications. However, there were some gaps regarding important knowledge and practice issues. To improve knowledge and practices regarding anticancer handling, training is necessary.
This study included isolation of some active materials from Curcuma longa such as tannins, saponins and volatile oils with percentage of 59%, 31%, and 9% respectively. Also the study included the determination of minerals in Curcuma longa such as " Na, Ca and K" using Flame photometer. The concentrations of these minerals were (14 ppm),(10 ppm) and )76 ppm) respectively. The anti-bacterial activity study was performed for the active materials isolated from Curcuma longa against two genus of pathogenic bacteria, Escherichia Coli and Staphylococcus aurous by using agar-well diffusion method. It appeared from this study that all of the extraction have inhibitory effect on bacteria was used. The inhibition zone diameter varies with
... Show MoreSmall molecules drug conjugate mutual prodrug design (SMDC) composed of folate and lethal agent conjugate, rigidly bonded via hydrophilic bridge and self immolative disulfide bond ; represent new interesting approaches for cancer treatment , the component of SMDC intended for targeting folate receptor , along with greater conservation of component until reaching the target tumor tissue . The designing and synthesis of compound VI and VIII derived from 6-Mercaptopurine (6-MP) and Methotrexate ( MTX) conjugate altogether as mutual prodrugs were processed forward successfully by multistep reaction procedures , and by Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) for
... Show MoreThe spectrum of clinical efficacy of Methotrexate (MTX) is broad in that MTX is used in the treatment of certain cancers, severe psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis.Various mechanisms by which cancer cells grown in tissue culture become resistant to anticancer drugs. The use of multiple drugs with different mechanisms of entry into cells and different cellular targets allows for effective chemotherapy and high cure rates. In an efforts to develop effective strategies that increase the therapeutic potential of anticancer drugs with less systemic toxicity ,are being directed towards the investigation of dietary supplements and other phytotherapeutic agents for their synergistic efficacy in combination with anticancer drugs. A pr
... Show MoreThe spectrum of clinical efficacy of Methotrexate (MTX) is broad in that MTX is used in the treatment of certain cancers, severe psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis.Various mechanisms by which cancer cells grown in tissue culture become resistant to anticancer drugs. The use of multiple drugs with different mechanisms of entry into cells and different cellular targets allows for effective chemotherapy and high cure rates. In an efforts to develop effective strategies that increase the therapeutic potential of anticancer drugs with less systemic toxicity ,are being directed towards the investigation of dietary supplements and other phytotherapeutic agents for their synergistic efficacy in combination with anticancer drugs. A promi
... Show MoreObjective: To determine the prevalence of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among Iraqi repatriated
prisoners of Iran-Iraq war, and the relationship with demographic factors.
Methodology: A descriptive study was carried out from Oct. 18th, 2009 through Jan. 10th, 2010. A nonprobability
based snowball sampling technique was used to recruit 92 Iraqi repatriated prisoners of war
(IRPOWs) who had visited Ministry of Human Rights. A data collection instrument was constructed that
consisted of six demographic characteristics, and eight items to measure the level of PTSD in POWs. Data were
collected with the constructed instrument during a brief interview. Data were analyzed through the application of
descriptive statist
The most common nosocomial fungal infection in hospitals is urinary tract candidiasis. Candida albicans is the most prevalent cause of nosocomial fungal urinary tract infections, however Candida species distribution is changing rapidly. At the same time, the rise in urinary tract candidiasis has resulted in the emergence of antifungal-resistant Candida species. This study aimed to diagnose Candida Spp. In women with UTI and reveal the nucleotides sequences of CA-INT-L Gene to look for mutation within the gene. This study included 100 women patients suffering from urinary tract infections and vaginal swabs samples from those individuals were taken to identify the presence of Candida. They were between the ages of 22 and 67. Candida i
... Show MoreBackground/Aim: The timing of a tooth's eruption can be affected by a variety of factors. The nutritional status has an impact on the development of a child's body. The purpose of the study was to analyse the number of children aged 6 to 9 in an Iraqi Arab population who had erupted permanent first molars and to examine how nutritional status affected the timing and level of emergence. Methods: A total of 330 boys and girls, in first grade elementary school, made up the sample. First molars that had erupted were noted, along with the level of the eruption. Each child's nutritional status was evaluated by recording their height and weight and body mass index (BMI) value was compared to the 2007 WHO reference. Results: Girls had highe
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The research aimed to evaluate the financial performance of the Public Company for the manufacture of medicines and medical supplies / Samarra - Iraq to know the strengths and weaknesses that affect its performance, as well as to compare its performance in the years between (2017-2019), which are characterized by security stability with its performance in previous years (2014 -2016) which is characterized by security instability, to assess the extent of its ability to achieve growth in performance, by answering the main question, what is the evaluation of the performance of the Public Company for the manufacture of medicines and medical supplies / Samarra - Iraq in the light of financial indicators?
... Show Moreackground: Escherichia coli is one of the most
important bacterial pathogen that can cause several
disease to human being . In our study we try to
investigate the sensitivity resistance pattern of
Escherichia coli against three antibiotics ( Amikacin,
Nalidixic acid and Cephalexin).
Methods: For this purpose we collected 51 clinical
isolates of Escherichia coli from stool and urine of
outpatient and inpatient patients from different wards
of AL-SADER Teaching Hospital in AL-NAJAF
AL-ASHRAf, IRAQ, and tested by culture and
sensitivity test .
Results: The results appeared that Amikacin show
the highest percentage of sensitivity ( 66.66 % ) ,
while Cephalexin show the lowest percentage of
sensiti