Otitis media with effusion (OME) is a common disease especially among young children (before school age) and it is one of the common causes of acquired hearing loss in childhood. Pediatric patients with OME are usually undernourished. The purpose of this study is to determine whether the serum levels of trace elements (zinc, copper, magnesium, iron) have a role in the development of OME in children. This study carried out on 55 children and subdivided them into two groups. Group 1 (patient group) consist of 30 children suffering from OME and group 2 (control group) included 25 apparently healthy children. Serum levels of zinc, copper, magnesium and iron were measured for both groups. Comparison the results between the two groups showed t

A stochastic process {Xk, k = 1, 2, ...} is a doubly geometric stochastic process if there exists the ratio (a > 0) and the positive function (h(k) > 0), so that {α 1 h-k }; k ak X k = 1, 2, ... is a generalization of a geometric stochastic process. This process is stochastically monotone and can be used to model a point process with multiple trends. In this paper, we use nonparametric methods to investigate statistical inference for doubly geometric stochastic processes. A graphical technique for determining whether a process is in agreement with a doubly geometric stochastic process is proposed. Further, we can estimate the parameters a, b, μ and σ2 of the doubly geometric stochastic process by using the least squares estimate for Xk a

Objectives: With the advent of ongoing novel modalities toward the treatment of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)/NEU - positive malignancies, the serious side effects of chemoradiotherapy have been minimized. Hence, this study was conducted to identify the patterns of immunohistochemical expression of the promising therapeutic target (HER2/NEU) among Iraqi patients with medulloblastoma in an attempt to provide basic histological information’s that would help in future clinical researches.Materials and Methods: In this retrospective study, 42 formalin - fixed paraffin - embedded tissue blocks represent cases of surgically removed medulloblastomas were retrieved from the archived materials in a specialized surgical ho

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, inflammatory, immune mediated disease of the central nervous system, mostly affecting young adults with mean age of 30 years, twice as high in women compared to men. The etiology of MS is not fully elucidated. MS symptoms are directly related to demyelination and axonal loss, along with other psychological symptoms, can result in functional limitations, disability and reduced quality of life (QoL).  The QoL assessments in patients with a chronic disease may contribute to improving treatment and could even be of prognostic value. The goals  of this study were  to  compare the QoL of  Iraqi patients with relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS),using three different diseas

Abstract

 The problem of missing data represents a major obstacle before researchers in the process of data analysis in different fields since , this problem is a recurrent one in all fields of study including social , medical , astronomical and clinical experiments .

The presence of such a problem within the data to be studied may influence negatively on the analysis and it may lead to misleading conclusions , together with the fact that these conclusions that result from a great bias caused by that problem in spite of the efficiency of wavelet methods but they are also affected by the missing of data , in addition to the impact of the problem of miss of accuracy estimation

The risk of breast cancer development is believed to be attributed to the alterations of a number of key biological components. Within this context, elevated levels of some chemokines that act as growth factors and can promote cancer development. The current study was designed to evaluate CXCL3 (a chemokine C-X-C Motif Ligand 3) and leptin (a peptide hormone synthesized by adipose tissue with cytokine activity) serum of Iraqi breast cancer patients in comparison to healthy controls. A total of 90 participants consisted of 60 patients diagnosed with breast cancer and 30 healthy women as control group were enrolled into this case-control study. Venous blood samples were collected from all participants to evaluate CXCL3 and leptin serum levels

The most common cause of upper respiratory tract infection is coronavirus, which has a crown appearance due to the existence of spikes on its envelope. D-dimer levels in the plasma have been considered a prognostic factor for COVID-19 patients.

Background: Smoking is the major environmental risk factor that has been associated with the pathogenesis and progression of periodontal diseases. Interleukin-8 (IL-8), has been associated with the immunopathology of periodontitis. Objectives: To determine the influence of smoking on salivary Interleukin-8 level from smokers and non-smokers with periodontitis and periodontally healthy control subjects.

Materials and Methods: Un-stimulated saliva samples were collected of 90 participants: 30 smokers and 30 non-smokers with chronic periodontitis, as well as 30 periodontally healthy control subjects. The clinical parameters such as the pocket depth, clinical attachment loss, plaque index, and gingiv

Persons with spinal cord injury are at high risk of developing pressure injuries, and their caregivers are in a critical position to help prevent them. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of an educational program for caregivers of persons with spinal cord injuries to prevent pressure injuries in Iraq. A pre- and post-test design was used and involved 25 caregivers of persons with spinal cord injury during the acute care phase in an SCI-specific unit of a hospital. A scale and questionnaire were used to gather the participants’ demographic information, pre- and post-educational program knowledge, and observations of their pre- and post-program performance of pressure injury preventive tasks. Descriptive s