Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a hereditary ailment that can cause severe pain and suffering to people who are affected. However, with continued investment in research and treatment options, we can make progress towards improving the lives of those with SCD. Over 40% of patients experience painful vaso-occlusive crises (VOCs), so we must work towards finding solutions and providing support for those living with this condition, These episodes, a hallmark of SCD, significantly contribute to morbidity, mortality, and a diminished quality of life, while also incurring substantial healthcare costs. Chronic pain particularly affects older adolescents and adults with SCD, with over half reporting daily discomfort. Opioid-based analgesics, though sti

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in a group of Iraqi obese children attending children welfare teaching hospital

Background: Alcohol remains the single most significant cause of liver disease throughout the Western world, responsible for between 40 and 80% of cases of cirrhosis in different countries. Many of the factors underlying the development of alcoholic liver injury remain unknown, and significant questions remain about the value of even very basic therapeutic strategies.
Patients and Methods: In a cross sectional study, 113 alcoholic patients with evidence of liver disease in the absence of other significant etiology attending the Gastoenterorology and Hepatology Teaching Hospital between December 2001 and December 2003 were studied for the hematological and biochemical spectrum of alcoholic liver disease in

Disease responses of eight wheat cultivars , Saber Beg. , Abu-Ghraib 3, Mexipak , Tamoz 2,Tamoz 3 , IPA 95 ,IPA 99 and Tahadi which were grown in four different sowing date , 25 th October , 19th September , 14th December and 8 January , to leaf rust disease caused by Puccinia recondita were investigated under natural infection conditions at the experimental farm , College of Agriculture , Abu-Ghraib, during the growing season of 1997-1998.Results of this study revealed that IPA 95, IPA 99 and Tahadi showed moderate resistant reaction, while Tamuz 3 was moderateley susceptable . Abu-Ghraib , Saber Beg, Tamuz 2 and Mexipak showed susceptible yeaction to the causal agent . The first sowing date was not suitable for disease progress in compars

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a diabetes- caused disease that is associated with  leakage of fluid from the blood vessels into the retina, leading to its damage. It is one of the most common diseases that can lead to weak vision and even blindness. Exudates is a clear indication of diabetic retinopathy, which is the main cause of blindness in people with diabetes. Therefore, early detection of exudates is a crucial and essential step to prevent blindness and vision loss is in the analysis of digital diabetic retinopathy systems. This paper presents an improved approach for detection of exudates in retina image using supervised-unsupervised Minimum Distance (MD) segmentation method. The suggested system includes three stages; First, a

Back ground: Hirschsprung`s disease is a common problem among pediatric population, many procedures had been implemented in the treatment with different results. In the last decades one stage transanal endorectal pullthrough (TEPT) had come into the stage as a minimal invasive choice for such condition with good results.
Objectives: To evaluate the feasibility and safety of TEPT procedure among pediatrics in a tertiary pediatric surgery center in Iraq.
Patients and Methods: A prospective study was conducted on 11 patients with Hirschsprung’s disease, attending Central Teaching Hospital of Pediatrics for the period from March 2007 till August 2014. Their ages were ranging from 1 month - 12 years. All cases had diverting colostomy

Background: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a very common liver disease in the world, particularly in Western and developed countries. It is rapidly growing in the Asia- Pacific region.
Objectives: This study was designed to determine the association between risk factors and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease grades among Malaysian adults.
Patients and Methods: A cross-sectional observational study design was prospectively carried out in this study. Consecutive 628 respondents who attended for a medical checkup at urban health center had been recruited for the study. All respondents had the physical examination, blood tests, clinical assessments, and abdominal ultrasoun

Background :Atherosclerosis is the most
frequent underlying cause of ischemic heart
disease and a major cause of death all over the
world. This study was carried out to analyze and
compare the angiographic findings in patients
with diabetes mellitus versus non diabetics with
coronary heart disease , and to correlate these
findings with some risk factors for coronary
heart disease.
Methods: A total of 100 patients were studied,
50 with diabetes mellitus, and 50 non diabetics.
This study was carried out at Al-Sadr teaching
hospital in Basrah, Southern Iraq during the
period April 2009- September 2009. All patients
were known to have coronary heart disease. Risk
factors for coronary heart disease

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic systemic inflammatory disease. Inflammation leads to joint damage and increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is a measure of inflammation in many diseases. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate the usefulness of NLR to detect inflammation in RA, and its correlation to RA disease activity indices and some hematological parameters. A cross-sectional study involving 24 patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who are using MTX participated in this study. All patients were clinically evaluated using disease activity score of 28 joints (DAS28) and simplified disease activity index (SDAI), whereas functional disability was assessed by health assessment questionnaire di