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 diseases modifying therapies(DMTs) administered orally, subcutaneously, and by slow infusion; namely, fingolimod,interferonB-1b, and natalizumab, respectively. And to assess the role of disability status, educational status, occupational status, MS duration, and treatment duration as a predictor for the QoL. Functional Assessment of Multiple Sclerosis (FAMS) questionnaire version 4 was used to assess QoL. Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics were tested by univariate and multivariate regression analyses to assess the contribution of these predictors to QoL. No significant differences were found in symptoms, thinking/fatigue subscales and FAMS total scores among the three DMTs. In conclusion: Iraqi MS patients using InterferonB-1b, fingolimod or natalizumab have a comparable low level of QoL. The expanded disability status scale (EDSS) is negatively associated with QoL of MS patients in all of the three therapies, while other predictors such as occupational status, educational status, smoking habit and MS duration have different impact in different treatments.
Breast cancer (BC) is one of the most frequently observed malignancy in females worldwide. Today, tamoxifen (TAM) is considered as the highly effective therapy for treatment of breast tumors. Oxidative stress has implicated strongly in the pathophysiology of malignancies. This study aimed to investigate the changes in the levels of oxidants and antioxidants in patients with newly diagnosed and TAM-treated BC. Sixty newly diagnosed and 60 TAM-treated women with BC and 50 healthy volunteers were included in this study. Parameters including total oxidant capacity (TOC), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), and catalase (CAT) activity were determined before and after treatment with TAM. The serum levels of TOC and oxidative stress index (OSI) were
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The current study aimed to identify the quality of health services provided by the Omani health sector through the comparison between public and private hospitals in Dhofar Governorate, Oman. A questionnaire has been developed to collect data from 360 patients who received health services in one public Hospital (Sultan Qaboos) and three private Hospitals (Badr Al-Sama, Lifeline, and Al-Hakeeim). The data were analyzed using independent samples T-Test and One Way ANOVA. The results of the study showed that the quality levels of health services offered in private hospitals were better than public hospitals. The study results also reveled that there are significant differences between public hospitals and private hos
... Show MoreSix house-hold Abyssinian pumps distributed in different villages of Mansoura (Mans-I, Mans-II and Mans-III) and Talkha (Talk-I, Talk-II and Talk-III) cities, Egypt, have been selected for regular seasonal water quality assessment during 2017. Water samples have been collected within the mid-periods of four seasons Standard assessment tools were employed for the integrated water quality assessment including Water Quality Index (WQI) and ISO standard algal toxicity test. WQI displayed remarkable local and seasonal variations with excellent (≥ 90) and good (70 - 89) only recorded for water samples collected from Mans-I pump located in sparsely populated area and far 50 meters only from the eastern (Damietta) branch of Nile River. WQI of
... Show More<p>In the mobile phone system, it is highly desirable to estimate the loss of the track not only to improve performance but also to achieve an accurate estimate of financial feasibility; the inaccurate estimate of track loss either leads to performance degradation or increased cost. Various models have been introduced to accurately estimate the path loss. One of these models is the Okomura / Hata model, which is recommended for estimating path loss in cellular systems that use micro cells. This system is suitable for use in a variety of environments. This study examines the comparison of path loss models for statistical analysis derived from experimental data collected in urban and suburban areas at frequencies of 150-1500 MHz
... Show MoreTuberculosis is caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis; it is considered as one of the most common, infectious diseases and major causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. A prospective study was conducted to obtain more clarification about the impact of causative agent and its treatment to enhance autoantibodies production such as ANCA and BPI which used as diagnostic markers for several diseases, and to provide further insight into the classical risk factors (age and sex).Seventy patients with tuberculosis involved in this study, 35 of them were untreated and 35 with treatment administration these patients were attending to directorate of general health national reference laboratory in Baghdad during the period between November/ 2012 and
... Show MoreReishi Mushroom, Ganoderma, is considered one of important wood-decaying medicinal mushrooms. This study aimed to identify three samples of this genus in Mosul city in February and April 2019. Three species of Ganoderma were collected from three various trees including Eucalyptus, Morus, and Olea (olive) in Mosul City, Northern Iraq. Their identifications and their DNA sequences were genetically identified by using PCR techniques according to detect nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions. Results exhibited the finding of Ganoderma resinaceum, Ganoderma applanatum, and Ganoderma sp. This study is first attempt to identify Reishi Mushroom by molecular methods in Iraq. Thus, the current study is considered new good d
... Show MoreThis research delts with study seven species of seeds and wild varieties wild belonging to the genus Medicago L., these species are: M. constricta Dur., M. coronata (L.) Bartal., M. intertexta (L.) Mill., M. intertexta.var. ciliaris (L.) Hyen., M. laciniata (L.) Mill., M. lupulina L., M. minima (L.) Bartal. and M. sativa L., the research involved characteristics of shapes, dimensions, colors and the nature of the surface ornamentation of seeds and also the hilum site. the seeds forms ranged between crescent, reniform and ovate, in addition there was a clear difference in seeds dimensions in height and width, while, the color has been vary between light brown to brown and dark brown. The nature of the surface ornamentation was smooth, retic
... Show MoreThe objective of this research was to investigate the effect of replacing fat(shortening) with different percentages of tahena on the quality properties (physiochemical and sensory ) of shortened cake.The percentages of moisture,protein ,fat and ash of cake increased significantly(p<0.05) as the replacement was increased .The highest increase percentages were 10,48,5,and 90 %,respectivly, at 100% replacement .Carbohydrate,however,decreased by 10%at 100% replacement .these findings may indicate improvement of cake nutritional value.Standing height,as an indicator of cake volume, also increased significantly by 4% at the 50% replacement then it decreased by 4% 100% replacement level. Basic formula (control) has signific
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