Anemia of chronic disease (ACD) and iron deficiency anemia (IDA) are the two most important types of anemia in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Functional iron deficiency in ACD can be attributed to overexpression of the main iron regulatory hormone hepcidin leading to diversion of iron from the circulation into storage sites resulting in iron-restricted erythropoiesis. The aim is to investigate the role of circulating hepcidin and to uncover the frequency of IDA in RA. The study included 51 patients with RA. Complete blood counts, serum iron, total iron binding capacity, ferritin, and hepcidin- 25 were assessed. ACD was found in 37.3% of patients, IDA in 11.8%, and combined (ACD/IDA) in 17.6%. Serum hepcidin was higher in ACD than in control and the other groups (P ≤ 0.001). It was strongly and positively correlated with ferritin (P < 0.001), while hemoglobin, serum iron, and total iron binding capacity were negatively correlated with hepcidin (P = 0.016, 0.022 and <0.001, respectively). High serum hepcidin was significantly associated with ACD in RA. IDA alone or combined with ACD was encountered in about a third of patients.
Background: Axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) is an inflammatory, systemic rheumatic condition that mostly affects the axial skeleton. Tenascin-C (TN-C) is a hexameric glycoprotein of considerable size, upregulated in many inflammatory conditions, while Interleukin-17 (IL-17) a cytokine that plays an important role in SpA symptoms. Objective: to investigate the upregulation between the serum levels of TN-C and IL-17 in Iraqi axSpA patients and the disease characteristics. Patients and Methods: Seventy-four axSpA patients and 28 matched controls were studied. Fifty-four patients received a tumor necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi) and 20 did not. Serum TN-C and IL-17 concentrations were determined using the ELISA technique. The Bath Ankyl
... Show MoreBackground: Lymphomas are group of diseases caused by malignant lymphocytes that accumulate in lymph nodes and caused the characteristics lymphadenopathy. Occasionally, they may spill over into blood or infiltrate organs outside the lymphoid tissue. The major subdivision of lymphomas is into Hodgkin lymphoma and non–Hodgkin lymphoma and this is based on the histologic presence of Reed-Sternberg cells in Hodgkin lymphoma. Salivary immunoglobulin A is the prominent immunoglobulin and is considered to be the main specific defense mechanism in oral cavity. The aim of this study was to determine the level of salivary immunoglobulin A in lymphoma patients before and after chemotherapy treatment. Subjects, materials and methods: The study i
... Show MoreBreast cancer is the most prevalent malignancy among women worldwide, in Iraq it ranks the first among the population and the leading cause of cancer related female mortality. This study is designed to investigate the correlations between serum and tissue markers in order to clarify their role in progression or regression breast cancer. Tumor Markers are groups of substances, mainly proteins, produced from cancer cell or from other cells in the body in response to tumor. The study was carried out from April 2018 to April 2019 with total number of 60 breast cancer women. The blood samples were collected from breast cancer women in postoperative and pretherapeutic who attended teaching oncology hospital of the medical city in Baghdad and
... Show MoreBackground: Venous thromboembolism (VTE), comprising deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE), presents an extra challenge in the management of patients with cancer, given the increase in morbidity and mortality in having both conditions. Cancer patients are well known to have a high risk of VTE; particularly; those who have had major surgery, chemotherapy and/or hormonal therapy. These groups of patients need to understand the risk factors and the prophylactic measures to prevent developing VTE. This review aims to provide an overview of the literature on cancer patients’ understanding of VTE and their experiences of cancer-associated thrombosis (CAT).
Method: A scoping review wa
... Show MoreConcrete structures is affected by a deleterious reaction, which is known as Alkali Aggregate Reaction (AAR). AAR can be defined as a chemical reaction between the alkali content in the pore water solution of the cement paste and reactive forms of silica hold in the aggregate. This internal reaction produces expansion and cracking in concrete, which can lead to loss of strength and stiffness. Carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) is one of the methods used to suppress further AAR expansion and rehabilitate and support damaged concrete structures. In this research, thirty-six cylindrical specimens were fabricated from non-reactive and reactive concrete, which contained fused silica as
Many studies of the relationship between COVID-19 and different factors have been conducted since the beginning of the corona pandemic. The relationship between COVID-19 and different biomarkers including ABO blood groups, D-dimer, Ferritin and CRP, was examined. Six hundred (600) patients, were included in this trial among them, 324 (56%) females and the rest 276 (46%) were males. The frequencies of blood types A, B, AB, and O were 25.33, 38.00, 31.33, and 5.33%, respectively, in the case group. Association analysis between the ABO blood group and D-dimer, Ferritin and CRP of COVID-19 patients indicated that there was a statistically significant difference for Ferritin (P≤0.01), but no-significant differences for both D-dimer and CRP.
... Show MoreBackground: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative aging disease, with idiopathic PD being most common. Gastrointestinal tract disorders (GITD) and microbiota changes may trigger idiopathic PD. Neurotoxins from microbiota can travel from the gut to the brain via the brain-gut axis (BGA), leading to α-syn protein misfolding and dopaminergic neuron death. Methods: The aim of the current study was to investigate the link between PD and GITD by measuring several biochemical and immunological markers in 142 patients. The biochemical markers measured were vitamins B6, B12, and D, calcium, serotonin, ghrelin, dopamine, and α-syn protein. The immunological markers included transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β), tu
... Show MoreBackground: The posterior slope of the articular eminence of completely edentulous patients compared to patients with maintained occlusion shows significant flattening. This study aimed to correlate between the flattening of the posterior slope of the articular eminence, with dental status, age, genders, on both sides using computed tomography. Materials and Methods: The sample of the present study was a total of 117 Iraqi subjects, who admitted to the maxillofacial department at Al-Sadr Teaching Hospital in Al-Najaf city. The examination was performed on CT scanner; the eminence inclination was measured in two methods using sagittal section. Results: Clinically, the inclination of articular eminence was higher in edentulous subjects than i
... Show MoreBackground. Colorectal cancer, ranking second place in global cancer mortality, arises from diverse causes. There is growing recognition of the substantial involvement of the epigenetic modifications of histones at the DNA level in the occurrence of CRC. Aim. To assess the expression of p53, HDAC1, and HDAC3 proteins in a cohort of CRC patients and to analyze potential relationship between their expression and the stages of CRC progression. Materials and Methods. The retrospective investigation was carried out on 95 paraffin-embedded CRC tissue samples. The expression of p53, HDAC1, and HDAC3 was assessed immunohistochemically. Results. Notably, the expression of the p53 protein in CRC tissue samples exhibited a prominent correlatio
... 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
... Show More