The mean age of AS patients was (35.0 ± 9.8) years.When the patients and control subjects were divided into different age groups (>40, 30-40, <30 years), the differences were not significantin terms of disease prevalence. The results also showed that the percentage of male patients is higher than that of females. There was no significant difference (P?0.05) between patients and controls in the distribution of males and females.Most of the patients had the disease for a period of 5 years or higher, with a disease severity of ? 2.1 and functional disability degree of I, II. The resultsshoweddifferent patterns of distribution for the three tested cytokines. A significant increase in the level of TNF-?, anon-significantincrease in the level of CXCL-8, and a significant decrease in the level of IL-10 were observed in the sera of patients with AS compared with the control.The patients also demonstrated significant decreases in the serum ALT and AST enzyme levels, hemoglobin (Hb) level, white blood cells (WBC) count, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) (P?0.05).The percentage of HLA-B27-positive Iraqi patients was lower than that of the HLA-B27-negative patients. Some of these patterns were also exposed to changes related to some determinants in patients, which included age, sex, disease duration, disease severity, functional disability, and HLA-B27 positivity,along with association with clinical subtypes of AS.The area under the curve was determined for the parameters of ESR, IL-10, TNF-? and CXCL-8.The most significant factor was found to beESR, followed by IL-10, and then TNF-?, with the presence of significant differences, while there was no diagnostic significance for CXCL-8 ,which showed no significant difference (p?0.05).
BACKGROUND: Enteric fever caused by Salmonella Typhi is an endemic disease in Iraq. Variations in presentations make it a diagnostic challenge. If untreated or treated inappropriately then it is a serious disease with potentially life-threatening complications. The recent emergence of drug resistant strains of S. Typhi is a rising public health problem and a clinical concern to the physician. AIM: The objectives of the study were to assess and describe the patterns of antimicrobial resistance, clinical characteristics, epidemiological distribution, and complications of typhoid fever. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fifty cases of typhoid fever (culture proven) were collected during the period from February 2019 to November 2019 in the me
... Show MoreBackground: Patient satisfaction is of increasing importance and widely recognized as an important indicator of quality of the medical care. There was no homogeneous definition of patient satisfaction, since satisfaction concerns different aspects of care or settings, as well as care given by various professions.
Objective: The objective of this study is to assess the patients’ level of satisfaction with diabetes care and to identify the underlying factors influencing it.
Methods: This cross-sectional study had been conducted in the Specialized Center for Diabetes and Endocrinology in Baghdad Al- Rusafa 2018. Where150 type two diabetic patients attending their follow-up
... Show MoreThe objective of this study was to determine the concentration of trace element chromium(III) and thyroid peroxidase activity in human serum , and to find a relationship between the concentration of chromium(III) and thyroid peroxidase activity in serum of patients with hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism and healthy subjects. Serum thyroid peroxidase was measured by enzyme linked radioimmunoassay(ELISA) method and chromium determination was by atomic absorption spectrophotometer .Comparing the values of chromium concentration and thyroid peroxidase activity in both samples showed that there were significant positive correlations between chromium levels and thyroid peroxidase activity(P<0.01, r=0.11).
... Show MoreAdipokines are associated with insulin resistance and obesity-related metabolic
disorders in many diseases. The levels of Lipocalin-2 and Retinol binding protein-4
were evaluated in sera of patients with Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) to study the
association between them and the inflammatory state as established by high levels of
C - reactive protein and with atherogenicity. Serum Lipocalin-2 and Retinol binding
protein-4 levels measured in 73 subjects: 48 patients with T2DM with the mean
level of C- reactive protein 23.989 mg/dL. For comparison, 25 age- and gendermatched
control participants enrolled with C- reactive protein CRP level 1.476
mg/dL. The results showed that circulating Lipocalin-2, and Retinol binding prot
Abstract:
Background: Retinol binding protein 4 (RBP4), an adipokine that participate in a lipid metabolism or insulin resistance through a complex regulatory network. Recently, RBP4 was reported to be associated with many cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) risk factors in patients of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). This study aims to study the correlation of serum RBP4 with some markers of glycemic control, dyslipidemia, hypertension and obesity in T2DM Iraqi patients.
Subjects and Methods: one hundred fifty participants were enrolled in this coss-sectional study, 120 of participants were T2DM patients and 30 were apparently healthy individuals to serve as control gro
... Show MoreAbstract: Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) are the most common bacterial infection in humans and a major cause of morbidity and they are the most common cause of hospital visits worldwide. Proper knowledge in identifying factors associated with urinary tract infection may allow the intervention to easily control of the disease in a timely manner. Therefore, the purpose of the study is determining the prevalence of UTI, diagnosis of causative bacterial agents and identifying the factors associated to the urinary tract infection among patients attending Medical City Hospital in Baghdad, Iraq. A total of 237, morning mid-stream urine samples were collected aseptically and the samples were diagnosed according to the standard methods. I
... Show MoreBackground: Diabetes and periodontitis are considered as chronic diseases with a bidirectional relationship between them. This study aimed to determine and compare the severity of periodontal health status and salivary parameters in diabetic and non-diabetic patients with chronic periodontitis. Materials and Methods: Seventy participants were enrolled in this study. The subjects were divided into three groups: Group I: 25 patients had type 2 diabetes mellitus with chronic periodontitis, Group 2: 25 patients had chronic periodontitis and with no history of any systemic diseases, Group 3: 20 subjects had healthy periodontium and were systemically healthy. Unstimulated whole saliva was collected for measurement of salivary flow rate and pH.
... Show MoreIntroduction: Inadequate pain assessment and management is a problem in hospitalized patients that impairs their wellbeing. Intensive care unit nurses’ pain practices are affected by several barriers and enablers. Objectives: The objectives of this study were to determine the level of nurses’ practices and perceived barriers related to pain assessment in critically ill patients. Methodology: A cross-sectional design study was used. Purposive sampling technique was employed, including 100 nurses recruited from 8 intensive care units in Baghdad city, Iraq. The study was conducted from September 1st to October 20th, 2022. The pain assessment and management for critically ill patients survey was used to collect data. Descriptive sta
... Show MorePatients with decompensated cirrhosis have typically prescribed a combination of therapeutic and prophylactic medications. Polypharmacy increases the probability of medication errors and drug related problems. Clinical pharmacists are highly effective at identifying, resolving, and preventing clinically important drug-related problems in their patients' care. The objectives of the study were the identification and classification of drug-related problems, as well as the discussion of these problems with health care providers (physicians, pharmacists, and nurses) and patients. Reduce their incidence as effectively as possible and educate all research participants on the significance of following their prescribed drug regimen
... Show More