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.
Flow-production systems whose pieces are connected in a row may not have maintenance scheduling procedures fixed because problems occur at different times (electricity plants, cement plants, water desalination plants). Contemporary software and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are used to fulfill the research objectives by developing a predictive maintenance program. The data of the fifth thermal unit of the power station for the electricity of Al Dora/Baghdad are used in this study. Three stages of research were conducted. First, missing data without temporal sequences were processed. The data were filled using time series hour after hour and the times were filled as system working hours, making the volume of the data relativel
... Show MoreBackground: Periodontal diseases are inflammatory diseases affecting the supporting tissues of the teeth. One of the leading environmental factors that are closely related not only to the risk but also to the prognosis of periodontitis is smoking. This study aimed to evaluate the influence of smoking on periodontal health status and to measure the levels of matrix metalloproteinase-9 in smokers and nonsmokers chronic periodontitis patients, also it aimed to test the correlation between the levels of matrix metalloproteinase-9 and the clinical periodontal parameters. Materials and Methods: Five milliliters samples of un-stimulated whole saliva and full-mouth clinical periodontal recordings (plaque index, gingival index, bleeding on probing,
... Show MoreBackground: There are many congenital anomalies associated with cleft lip and/or palate. This research is to study the prevalence of congenitally missing teeth and supernumerary teeth in this population group. Materials and Method: One hundred eight cleft lip and/or palate Iraqi patients had participated in this study (57 male, 51 female), 3-12 years of age. 26 of them had orthopantomogram were within (6-12) years of age were inspected for congenitally missing teeth and supernumerary teeth. Patients whom age range 3-5 years were checked for the congenitally missing teeth by clinical examination with strongly insisting the teeth were not missed due to caries or trauma. Results: There were 19(73.076%) patients with 41 congenitally missing tee
... Show MoreBackground: Toxoplasmosis is a very common infection caused by the obligate intracellular protozoan parasite. This parasite is called Toxoplasma gondii widely distributed around the world . Toxoplasma gondii can be vertically transmitted to the fetus during pregnancy and may cause wide range of clinical manifestations in the offspring.
Objective: To determine seroprevalence Immunoglobulin G (IgG) and Immunoglobulin M (IgM ) to toxoplasma gondii among pregnant women and to identify the risk factors.
Type of the study: A cross-sectional study.
Methods: A total of 110 blood samples of pregnant women were collected from
... Show MoreBackground: Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis (RAS) is the most common painful oral mucosal disease, affecting approximately 20% of the population. RAS presents with a wide spectrum of severity ranging from a minor nuisance to complete debility. Many of factors thought to have been involved in its etiology; that might have at the same time a direct or indirect impact upon oxidant/antioxidant system and trigger free radicals production. The aim of this study was to determine the possible association of oxidant/total antioxidant status and recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS). Subjects, materials and methods: The study consisted of thirty patients with recurrent aphthous stomatitis and thirty healthy controls from which saliva and blood samples we
... Show MoreOne of the most common public liver diseases over the world is fatty liver which contain alcoholic and non-alcoholic fatty liver. One-fourth among general population are impact Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) in the worldwide.Retinol binding protein 4 (RBP4) is known as an adipokine, mainly synthesized and secreted from the liver and form adipose tissues. RBP4 acts as a transporter and specifically bound to retinol from liver to others tissues. Visfatin is an adipocytokine and mainly produced from visceral fat tissue, skeletal muscles as well as liver. Vitamin A absorbed, transported as retinyl esters to the liver then hydrolyzed to the retinol form and storage in hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) after reesterified with rigly
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The Paper highlights on one of the main activities in marketing management. That is the internal marketing in the commercial banks and its relationship with the quality services offered to satisfy customers needs and wishes in order to reach he ultimate objectives of those banks. Two state and five private banks in Basrah city (Iraq) were taken in a field study. The survey covered the opinions of (184) state bank employees and (158) clients . The analysis of the survey shows that there is a strong relationship between the internal marketing ( in the banks covered by the survey) and the quality of banking objective services and the private banks show greater interest and concern to the internal ma
... Show MoreThis study aimed to explore self and public stigma towards mental illness and associated factors among university students from 11 Arabic‐speaking countries. This cross‐sectional study included 4241 university students recruited from Oman, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Syria, Sudan, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine and Egypt. The participants completed three self‐administrative online questionnaires—Demographic Proforma (age, gender, family income, etc.), Peer Mental Health Stigmatization Scale and Mental Health Knowledge Questionnaire. There was a significant difference in the average mean between the 11 countries (
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a prevalent condition in women of reproductive age. It is characterized by androgen excess and chronic anovulation. Some trace elements, macroelements, and heavy metals have been linked to pathophysiological mechanisms of PCOS .
To study the alterations in the serum levels of the trace element manganese (Mn), some macroelements, magnesium(Mg) and calcium (Ca), and the heavy metals cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb), in obese and non-obese PCOS patients; and the association of these alterations with some of the hormonal changes occurring in PCOS.
The study was carried out at Kamal Al-Samarrai Hospital (Center for Infertility treatment and in vitro Fertilization "IVF") Baghdad- Iraq. Eig
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