Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease with polymorphic expression. B cells have an essential contribution in immune system activation via the production of different cytokines and functioning as potent antigen-presenting cells. Therefore, a drug that particularly targets B cells may represent an ideal therapeutic approach for SLE. Rituximab (RTX), an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody causing transient B-cell depletion, has been used to manage SLE. This study aims to assess Rituximab effects on lupus nephritis (LN) patients when added to conventional immunosuppressants. Twenty four patients, 15-32 years old, with class III/IV/V LN were involved in this study. All were on steroids before lupus nephritis occurrence. They were given rituximab induction therapy and mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) maintenance therapy. RTX was indicated for refractory and relapsing SLE. Several investigations done before and after RTX treatment and in the last follow up (done one year after starting Rituximab). Those included protein in urine, serum creatinine, double stranded DNA, C3, C4, and Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR). Proteinuria decreased significantly after RTX treatment and in the last measurement (P=0.01 and P=0.001, respectively). Serum creatinine significantly decreased only in the last measurement (P=0.02). Double stranded DNA decreased remarkably after treatment (P=0.01) with a further decrease in the last measurement (P=0.006). C3 and C4 increased after treatment but the increase was significant only for C3 (P=0.002) and this increase continues till the last measurement (P=0.0006). Active urine sediments found in fifteen patients and disappeared after RTX treatment. Rituximab can be promising in treating lupus nephritis when used along with traditional immunosuppressants. It can reduce disease activity and improve renal function in such patients.
Background: Otitis media with effusion is a common and important pediatric clinical problem; it is the leading cause of hearing impairment in children. Medical treatment remains controversial. Aim: To evaluate the usefulness of using topical nasal steroids in the treatment of otitis media with effusion. Patients and Methods: Between November 2019 and October 2022, a prospective controlled clinical study was carried out in the department of otolaryngology at Al-Jerrahat Teaching Hospital in Medical City, Baghdad, Iraq. This study comprised 40 patients with bilateral otitis media with effusion (23 males, 17 females). Two groups were created for the patients. Patients in group A (20 patients) were treated with mometasone furoate nasal spra
... Show MoreMost of drinking water consuming all over the world has been treated at the water treatment plant (WTP) where raw water is abstracted from reservoirs and rivers. The turbidity removal efficiency is very important to supply safe drinking water. This study is focusing on the use of multiple linear regression (MLR) and artificial neural network (ANN) models to predict the turbidity removal efficiency of Al-Wahda WTP in Baghdad city. The measured physico-chemical parameters were used to determine their effect on turbidity removal efficiency in various processes. The suitable formulation of the ANN model is examined throughout many preparations, trials, and steps of evaluation. The predict
The aesthetic and technical expertise help in producing the artistic work and achieving results in aesthetic formulations that reflect the aesthetic and expressive dimensions and the reflective dimensions of the pottery, surpassing its traditions, asserting its active presence in life, cherishing it even when it breaks or get damaged by employing techniques that are originated from the Japanese environment.
The research problem is to study how ( Kintsugi) technique and similar techniques are used to create new rebirths of pottery piec
... Show MoreResearch deals the crises of the global recession of the facets of different and calls for the need to think out of the ordinary theory and find the arguments of the theory to accommodate the evolution of life, globalization and technological change and the standard of living of individuals and the size of the disparity in income distribution is not on the national level, but also at the global level as well, without paying attention to the potential resistance for thought the usual classical, Where the greater the returns of factors of production, the consumption will increase, and that the marginal propensity to consume may rise and the rise at rates greater with slices of low-income (the mouths of the poor) wi
... Show MoreAlthough cinema is moving towards art, it has dealt with the character since the beginning of the discovery of cinematic art in films such as (Doctor Caligari's cabin) and most German expressive films in the third decade of the twentieth century, but the interest of cinema is growing in the estranged human personality, meaning that this character It lives by its alienation from the environment and society that surrounds it, because our present days have witnessed on the material and moral level more social breakdowns such as wars and disasters, and the sharp contradiction in the social and economic level of people themselves or between different societies, or between the individual and his community, and new social relations have increas
... Show MoreStrategies to reduce obesity have become main priority for many health institution and health staff around the world, as the prevalence of obesity has risen and exacerbated in most of the world mainly because of the modern life style which tend to be more sedentary with an increase eating unhealthy fast western food. Many years ago, the lipid-lowering drug simvastatin; and omega-3 were considered as a traditional lipid-lowering drug that have been well-documented to possess anti-inflammatory, cardioprotective and triglyceride-lowering properties; and their co-administration may demonstrate a complementary effect in lowering patients' triglycerides and total cholesterol to treat atherosclero
... Show MoreBackground: Adenoiditis is a common cause of otitis media with effusion (OME) in children & perhaps OME is one of the most common diseases leads to hearing impairment in children with subsequent impairment of speech development & learning difficulties , however, treatment remains controversial. Objectives: To evaluate if there is a significant advantage of tympanostomy tube insertion in association with adenoidectomy over adenoidectomy in association with myringotomy alone in treatment of children with OMEType of the study: This is a prospective study. Patients & methods: The study consisted from 63 children diagnosed as cases of bilateral OME & variable degrees of adenoid hypertrophy. The patients were divided randomly i
... Show MoreElectrocoagulation process was employed for the treatment of river water flows in Iraq. In this study, a batch Electrocoagulation process was used to treat river water taken from Al - Qadisiyah water treatment plant. electrolysis time, voltage and inter-electrode spacing were the most important parameters to study . A statistical model was developed using the RSM model. The optimum condition after studying the parameter effect the process was 1 cm separating, 30 volts . The RSM model shows the ideal condition of removal for both the TSS and turbidity at 1 cm, 20 volts and 55 min.
Sewage water is a mixture of water and solids added to water for various uses, so it needs to be treated to meet local or global standards for environmentally friendly waste production. The present study aimed to analyze the new Maaymyrh sewage treatment plant's quality parameters statistically at Hilla city. The plant is designed to serve 500,000 populations, and it is operating on a biological treatment method (Activated Sludge Process) with an average wastewater inflow of 107,000m3/day. Wastewater data were collected daily by the Mayoralty of Hilla from November 2019 to June 2020 from the influent and effluent in the (STP) new in Maaymyrh for five water quality standards, such as (BOD5), (COD), (TSS), (TP)
... Show MoreAnaerobic digestion (AD) is the most common process for dealing with primary and secondary wastewater sludge. In the present work, four pre-treatment methods (ultrasonic, chemical, thermal, and thermo-chemical) are investigated in Al-Rustumya Wastewater Treatment plant in order to find their effect on biogas production and volatile solid removal efficiency during anaerobic digestion.
Two frequencies of ultrasonic wave were used 30 KHz and 50 KHz during the pre-treatment. Sodium hydroxide was added in different amounts to give three pH values of 9, 10 and 11 in chemical pre-treating processes. The sludge was heated at 60oC and 80oC through thermal pre-treatment experiment. Also, the sludge was treated thermo-chemically at 80 oC and pH