Background: Rituximab is a chimeric IgG1 kappa immunoglobulin that has been genetically modified to incorporate human constant region sequences together with murine light- and heavy-chain variable region sequences. People use it to treat rheumatoid arthritis and certain malignancies. Objective: The study aimed to assess the potential association between the serum levels of Factor I, CD59, interleukins (IL)-6, and interferon-gamma (IFN)-γ and the response to Rituximab treatment in Iraqi rheumatoid arthritis patients. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at the rheumatology center at Baghdad Teaching Hospital. Ninety adult patients who have been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and are receiving Rituximab intravenous infusions were included. The enrolled patients were divided into a responder group (45 patients) and a non-responder group (45 patients). The response to Rituximab was assessed according to the 28-joint Disease Activity Score (DAS28). Results: The serum levels of Factor I and CD59 were significantly higher in the non-responders group in comparison to the responders group. In addition, the serum IL-6 and IFN-γ levels were significantly elevated in the non-responders group in comparison to the responders group. The estimated marker serum levels showed a strong, significant correlation with the 6-month change in DAS28. Conclusions: In Rituximab nonresponder RA patients, serum levels of Factor I, CD59, Factor H, IL-6, and IFN-γ are higher, and they have good potential to be used in the assessment of the response to Rituximab therapy.
Introduction: Breast cancer is the most common cancer and the major cause of cancer related deaths among Iraqi women. Due to the relatively late detection of breast cancer, the majority of the patients are still treated by modified radicle mastectomy. Aim: To assess the time lag between diagnosis of breast cancer and mastectomy among Iraqi patients; correlating the findings with other clinicopathological characteristics of the disease. Patients and methods: This retrospective study enrolled 226 Iraqi female patients who were diagnosed with breast cancer. Data were registered on the exact time period between signing the histopathological report and the surgical treatment. Other recorded variables included the age of the patients, their level
... Show MoreIntroduction: Breast cancer is the most common cancer and the major cause of cancer related deaths among Iraqi women. Due to the relatively late detection of breast cancer, the majority of the patients are still treated by modified radicle mastectomy. Aim: To assess the time lag between diagnosis of breast cancer and mastectomy among Iraqi patients; correlating the findings with other clinicopathological characteristics of the disease. Patients and methods: This retrospective study enrolled 226 Iraqi female patients who were diagnosed with breast cancer. Data were registered on the exact time period between signing the histopathological report and the surgical treatment. Other recorded variables included the age of the patients, their level
... Show Morethe student of the structure of the city and its constituent elements will clearly sense the invisible relationships that underlie the different forms of urban activity, which in turn are defined by the generality of the urban patterns in that city, which will vary clearly according to the location in the city. These relations will be embodied in their true form in the interactions between the different uses of the earth, and the change that will result from their regularity in the form of entities in independent groups, which may share with each other a component of it.
Therefore, the process of controlling the functional interactions between the uses of the urban land and the awareness of t
The relationship of hyperuricemia to kidney disease, diabetes, hypertension and the risk of cardiovascular diseases remain controversial. The aim of this study is to evaluate the use of uric acid (UA) levels to find the higher risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in patients with end stage renal disease that have diabetic nephropathy (DN), nephropathy with hypertension (NH) and patients with both diabetic nephropathy with hypertension (DNH). This study deals with 115 patients with end-stage renal disease under hemodialysis sub-grouped into 35 patients with (DN), 40 patients with (NH), and 40 patients with (DNH). Some biochemical parameters were determined in the serum of all participants such as HbA1c, fasting blood glucose (FBG), UA, urea,
... Show MoreBackground: Oral mucositis is regarded as one of the major complications of radiation therapy especially in patients with head and neck cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of glutamine in preventing or minimizing the development of mucositis of the oral cavity. Subjects and methods: Forty-six participants were randomly selected amongst those who were planned to receive radiation therapy for head and neck region cancers. They were randomly divided into two groups of 23 subjects, one group received glutamine and the second group received a placebo. Results: Glutamine had a statistically significant effect in reducing the occurrence and/or severity of oral mucositis in the treated patients compared to patients in the con
... Show MoreThe problem of the research lies in the lack of standard levels for modern administration as a guide for evaluating weaknesses and strengths as well as finding solutions. The aim of the research lies in identifying standard levels for modern administration in Iraqi central Olympic committee and international federations. The subjects were (24) Olympic committee' federations. All procedures were standardized to fit our modern administration work. The data was collected and treated using proper statistical operations. The researcher concluded standard levels for modern administration in international federation of the Iraqi Olympic committee, in addition to that he concluded that most administrations levels ranged within four levels (good, fa
... Show MoreEach sport has its own energy requirements that differ from the energy requirements of other sports, and a different method is used in each of them, so the trainer must first rely on the principle of privacy in training first, that is, privacy according to the working energy system, that is, he defines the controlling energy system In that event, and how the muscles use the available energy to perform according to the energy production systems. As we find the serving skill is the first volleyball skill with which the team starts the match in order to be able to gain points directly, through knowledge it turns out that there is a weakness in the skill performance, especially the skill of serving and being The key to victory for volle
... Show MoreThe objective of the work was to study the changes in height and stem diameter of sunflower plants during growth stages under hardening conditions to drought tolerance. Field experiments were carried out during the spring season of 2000 and2001. Agricultural practices were made according to recommendations.Asplit-split plots design was used with three replications.The main plots included irrigation treatments:irrigation to100%(full irrigation),75and50%of available water.The sub plots were the cultivars Euroflor and Flame.The sub-sub plots represented four seed soaking treatments:Control(unsoaking), soaking in water ,Paclobutrazol solution(250ppm),and Pix solution(500ppm). The soaking continued for 24 hours then seeds were dried at room
... Show MoreBackground Direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) combination therapies from various mechanisms of action and families have been revolutionized the management landscape of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV). Ombitasvir, paritaprevir with ritonavir (OBV/PTV/r) ± ribavirin (RBV) is approved to treat HCV genotype 4 (GT4) infection. Here, our objective was to delineate the efficacy and safety of OBV/PTV/r plus RBV in treating of Egyptian naïve patients infected with HCV GT4.
Methods a cohort of 100 Egyptian patients infected with HCV GT4 was allocated and administered orally OBV/PTV/r with RBV. The primary endpoint of our study was a sustained virological response (HCV RNA < 12 IU/mL) 12 weeks after the c
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