Biological drugs have an active substance that is made by a living organism or derived from a living organism. They are one of the important therapy options used in a wide range of diseases especially life-threatening diseases. Biological therapy opens new opportunities for treating different diseases for which drug therapy is minimal, but they have considerable differences in the safety consequences in comparison with non-biological drugs. The aim of the current study was to assess the post-marketing safety profile of biological drugs used in Iraqi hospitals by the analysis of the reported adverse drug reactions regarding their severity, seriousness, preventability, expectedness, and outcome. It is a retrospective study of the individual case safety reports from the Iraqi Pharmacovigilance Center/Ministry of Health. There were 446 individual case safety reports in the research, involving 899 adverse drug reactions. Rituximab was found to be the drug with the highest number of adverse drug reactions with 241 adverse drug reactions (26.81% out of total adverse drug reactions). Most of the adverse drug reactions were related to general disorders and administration site conditions (22.25%). Regarding severity of adverse drug reactions, the majority of adverse drug reactions were observed in moderate levels [Level 4 (26%), and Level 3 (18%)]. The severe adverse drug reactions in patients below 18 years age group were significantly higher compared to adults and elderly. Seriousness assessment showed that the majority of adverse drug reactions were serious (52%). Rituximab was the drug for which the highest number of serious adverse drug reactions was reported (41.28% of total serious adverse drug reactions), Most of the adverse drug reactions (66%) were probably preventable. Fatality outcome was reported for 3% of adverse drug reactions while 43% of adverse drug reactions were recovered/resolved.
As many expensive and invasive procedures are used for the diagnosis or follow-up of clinical conditions, the measurement of cell-free DNA is a promising, noninvasive method, which considers using blood, follicular fluid, or seminal fluid. This method is used to determine chromosomal abnormalities, genetic disorders, and indicators of some diseases such as polycystic ovary syndrome, pre-eclampsia, and some malignancies. Cell-free DNA, which are DNA fragments outside the nucleus, originates from an apoptotic process. However, to be used as a marker for the previously mentioned diseases is still under investigation. We discuss some aspects of using cell-free DNA measurements as an indicator or marker for pathological conditions.
Objectives To determine the prevalence of oral lesions by age and gender among the pediatric population in Iraq. Materials and methods A review of the archives of the oral pathology department of Baghdad University from, 1970 Materials and Methods: A review of the archives of the oral pathology department of Baghdad University from 1970 to 2013 for all biopsies from children aged 0–15 years old. Results A total of 1286 child specimens represented 11.98% of all biopsied lesions. The pyogenic granuloma was the most frequent lesion in children, and the periapical cyst was the most frequent lesion from an odontogenic origin. The incidence of malignant lesions was higher in the 0–3 age group than other groups. Conclusions The majority of les
... Show MoreBackground: Primary Health care (PHC) is unanimous to be the cornerstone of a person-centered health system. While the adoption of a well-function, two-way, and organized referral system is the mainstay in the development of an efficient healthcare delivery system.
Objective: To Assess the practice & opinion of doctors in the hospitals toward the referral system. to determine the doctors in the hospital's commitment to referral system instructions and guidelines.
Subjects and Methods: A cross-sectional study with analytic elements was conducted in nine Iraqi governorates. Eight doctors from each health directorate, resulting in a tot
... Show MoreBackground: Patients with type 2 diabetes have an increased prevalence of lipid abnormalities, contributing to their high risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD).Glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) is a routinely used marker for long-term glycemic control. In accordance with its function as an indicator for the mean blood glucose level, HbA1c predicts the risk for the development of diabetic complications in diabetic patients[2].Apart from classical risk factors like dyslipidemia, HbA1c has now been regarded as an independent risk factor for (CVD) in subjects with or without diabetes.Objective The aim of this study was to find out association between glycaemic control (HbA1c as a marker) and serum lipid profile in type 2 diabetic patients.Methods
... Show MoreBackground: Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a well-recognized cause of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality.Objectives: To evaluate the prognostic implications of the restrictive left ventricular filling pattern (RFP) in dilated cardiomyopathy.Methods: Patients with DCM admitted to Ibn AL-Bitar Hospital for Cardiac Surgery, Baghdad-Iraq, from May 2006 to August 2008, underwent a full clinical evaluation and Doppler echocardiography study. Patients were classified into three groups: Group I had persistent restrictive filling pattern; Group II had reversible restrictive filling pattern; and Group III had nonrestrictive filling pattern. Results: The current study was conducted on a total number of 80 patients with DCM, fifty (62.5 %) were
... Show MoreType 2 diabetes mellitus is often characterized by hyperglycemia as a result of increased insulin resistance in hepatic/peripheral tissues and pancreactic B-cell dysfunction. Approximately 92% of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus demonstrate insulin resistance, however hyperglycemia is always a consequence of insulin deficiency. This study was done on 120 patients newly diagnosed diabetes type 2 characterized by dyslipidemia that is increased triglycerides and decreased HDL. Hypoglycemia and weight gain are common problem with oral sulfonyl urea drugs. In this work three different oral hypoglycemic drugs repaglinide and glibenclamide (insulin secretagogues) and rosiglitazone (insulin sensitizer) were used for treatment of patients w
... Show More:Background: Many studies had stated that there are marked variations in the clinical presentation of depressive states between different cultures.Objectives: The main aim of the study is to identify the symptoms profile of patients with major depressive disorder living in Baghdad.Method: Ninety two patients with major depressive disorder consulting Ibn-Rushd psychiatric teaching hospital were studied thoroughly to identify the frequency of symptoms among them. The fifth edition of the Arabic version of the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (M.I.N.I) was used to identify the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual – fourth edition (DSM-IV) symptoms. A list of other symptoms, which were found to present variably in depression acco
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