Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease with polymorphic expression. B cells have an essential contribution in immune system activation via the production of different cytokines and functioning as potent antigen-presenting cells. Therefore, a drug that particularly targets B cells may represent an ideal therapeutic approach for SLE. Rituximab (RTX), an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody causing transient B-cell depletion, has been used to manage SLE. This study aims to assess Rituximab effects on lupus nephritis (LN) patients when added to conventional immunosuppressants. Twenty four patients, 15-32 years old, with class III/IV/V LN were involved in this study. All were on steroids before lupus nephritis occurrence. They were given rituximab induction therapy and mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) maintenance therapy. RTX was indicated for refractory and relapsing SLE. Several investigations done before and after RTX treatment and in the last follow up (done one year after starting Rituximab). Those included protein in urine, serum creatinine, double stranded DNA, C3, C4, and Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR). Proteinuria decreased significantly after RTX treatment and in the last measurement (P=0.01 and P=0.001, respectively). Serum creatinine significantly decreased only in the last measurement (P=0.02). Double stranded DNA decreased remarkably after treatment (P=0.01) with a further decrease in the last measurement (P=0.006). C3 and C4 increased after treatment but the increase was significant only for C3 (P=0.002) and this increase continues till the last measurement (P=0.0006). Active urine sediments found in fifteen patients and disappeared after RTX treatment. Rituximab can be promising in treating lupus nephritis when used along with traditional immunosuppressants. It can reduce disease activity and improve renal function in such patients.
Electrocoagulation is an electrochemical process of treating polluted water where sacrificial anode corrodes to produce active coagulant (usually aluminum or iron cations) into solution. Accompanying electrolytic reactions evolve gas (usually as hydrogen bubbles). The present study investigates the removal of phenol from water by this method. A glass tank with 1 liter volume and two electrodes were used to perform the experiments. The electrode connected to a D.C. power supply. The effect of various factors on the removal of phenol (initial phenol concentration, electrode size, electrodes gab, current density, pH and treatment time) were studied. The results indicated that the removal efficiency decreased as initial phenol concentration
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The most famous thing a person does is talk. He loves and hates, and continues with it confirming relationships, and with it, too, comes out of disbelief into faith. Marry a word and separate with a word. He reaches the top of the heavens with a kind word, with which he will gain the pleasure of God, and the Lord of a word that the servant speaks to which God writes with our pleasure or throws him on his face in the fire. Emotions are inflamed, the United Nations is intensified with a word, and relations between states and war continue with a word.
What comes out of a person’s mouth is a translator that expresses the repository of his conscience and reveals the place of his bed, for it is evidence of
... Show MoreEndometriosis is a common women health disorder that occurs when Endometrial-like tissue grows outside the uterus. This may lead to irregular bleeding , pelvic pain, infertility and other complications. Metformin, because of its activity to improve insulin sensitivity, it is used for the treatment of diabetes; it also has a modulatory effect on ovarian steroid production and has anti-inflammatory properties, all may suggest its possible effect in treatment of endometriosis. This study was planned to determine the effect of metformin on serum levels of&nbs
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Space is considered as an important element in constructing artwork, it can be a dominant and fulfilled part that adds new existence to the content. Each artwork must have a space artistically or analytically. The internal and eternal space of artwork have associated with each other in order to be ann important connected unit that establishes the work epressions and helps the audience to understand it. Such kind of works can be represented by the works of the potter (Sheinyor Abdu Allah) which have uarious expressions of space which this study is based on.The study aims at finding out the treatment of apace in the ceramic sculpture works of the potter (Sheinyar Abdu Allah).The second chapter has many sections. T
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There are many causes for epistaxis but it is mainly idiopathic in type. In Management of epistaxis there are different modality either medical or cautery(chemical or galvanic) recently laser is used in management of epistaxis. The type of laser used in current study was 810 nm diode laser. The aim of the study is to evaluate its efficiency in control of active and non active idiopathic epistaxis; The design of the study is interventional therapeutic trial. The study was performed from December 2011 to December 2012 in Al Yarmouk teaching hospital at otorhinolaryngology department. In current study the diode laser is used in different power with same exposure time in all application; The power density is measured and choose the best one
... Show MoreThe surgical treatment of inferior turbinate hypertrophy (ITH) is challenging. Submucosal diathermy (SMD) is a well-known surgical procedure used for the treatment of ITH, microdebrider-assisted rhinoplasty (MAT) is relatively a newer technique used in the management of ITH. To evaluate the effect of MAT on inferior turbinate size and nasal airway patency in patients with bilateral ITH in comparison to SMD. Seventy-one patients presented with nasal obstruction due to bilateral ITH were allocated into two groups, group a (35 patients) were subjected to SMD and 36 patients in group B were subjected to MAT. All the patients had been sent to CT scan pre-operatively and at the third postoperative month to measure the cross-sectional areas
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Sewage sludge samples were collected from Al-rasafa and Al-karkh refinement stations which represent the main stations of Baghdad city. Samples were collected from all treatment stages: before, after, and during refinement processes. The High Purity Germanium Coaxial Detector system with energy resolution 1.8 keV for energy line 1333 keV of Co – 60 radioactive sources was used to measure radioactivity from both natural and artificial sources. GENIE – 2000 analysis the results statistically and qualitatively. The results showed that all sewage sludge samples exhibited natural radioactive level and sometimes less than the international regular standards, but Al–Karkh station showed increment in radioactive levels than Al– Rasa
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