Background: Mitral valve stenosis is a condition in which the hearts mitral valve is narrowed (stenosis), This narrowing blocks the valve from opening properly obstructing blood flow through the heart and the rest of the body and this causes changes in physical parameters (resistance and conductance). Aim of the study: To assess the changes in the physical parameters in mitral valve stenosis disease in different gender and age by using Doppler ultrasound. Methods : The examination of patients at the Division of Echo - at the Iraqi Center for Heart Disease in Medical City for surgery specialist - Baghdad - Iraq, during(February2009 till November2010). The current study included fifty eight cases containing (27 males and 31 females) ages rang

Background: Joint hypermobility  was first mentioned by Hippocrates as an isolated feature, when he described the Celts' Incapacity to Pull a Bowstring or Throw a Dart, Due to The Slackness of Their Limbs

Objective: to determine the prevalence of mitral valve prolapse(MVP)in patients with benign hypermobility syndrome (BJHS).

Type of the study: Cross –sectional study.

Methods: Ninety patients with BJHS were included in this study. Full cardiological assessment was done for all of them,  which  include clinical examination, electrocardiography and echocardiography. Cardiac assessment was done for another sixty age and sex matched (

Background Mitral valve (MV) is one of the most complex structures in human heart with a challenging exposure. Traditionally, MV is approached via left atriotomy (LAA) while superior septal approach (SSA) is an alternative.
Objective:  is to highlight the merits and demerits of these two approaches in providing access to the MV in term of the aortic cross clamp time (ACCT), quality of exposure, and potential complications in view of the published literature.

Patients and Method: Over an 18-month period ending at June 30^th, 2019, 56 patients with MV disease ± other cardiac diseases were enrolled in this study. Twenty patients had surgery via LAA (one surgeon) w

Background: Tinea versicolor is a common dermatological problem ,world wide distribution , caused by a dimorphic fungus called Malassezia furfur ,it live normally on skin as a commensal . Many factors play a role in the etiology of TV among these could be the disturbed immune system which may be related to the ability of TV alter the immune system by a process called Immunomodulation leading to subsequent infection. Immuno-inflammatory activity mediated by different cytokines could have a role in the etiology of TV.
Objective: To evaluate the serum level of the inflammatory cytokines ,IL-4andIL-8,in patients with TV as compared to immunocompramized patients and healthy groups.
Patients and methods

Background: Among individuals who have a stenotic aortic valve, a precise assessment of aortic valve area is essential for clinical judgment. So far, no studies have been conducted to investigate and assess the role of the three dimensional echo-cardiography in the assessment of the valve stenosis. This study aims to compare and assess the precision of the measurement of the stenosis area of the aortic valve by 2D versus 3D echo-cardiography.

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic and debilitating autoimmune disease characterized by chronic inflammation with subsequent cartilage and bone destruction. Cytokines are  key mediators of inflammation and can be found in abundance both in the joint and blood of patients. This study was designed to evaluate the role of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines in pathogenesis of RA, as well as study the correlation among these cytokines.
Patients and methods: Forty patients with RA and thirty age-matched healthy controls were included in this study. Serum cytokines were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.
Results: The serum levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1α, IL-2, IL-6, IL-8

Background: Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) is the most polymorphic genetic system in man. The genes of this region influence susceptibility to certain disease.
Objectives: This study was established to shed light on the possible association of HLA class I and II antigens with RV patients.
Patients and Methods: Lymphocytotoxicity assay for HLA for class I and II typing had been done for (100) Iraqi patients suffering from rheumatic valvulitis (RV), the control groups consisting of (75 healthy individuals and 35 non rheumatic heart disease (NRHD) patients ).
Results: The results showed a significant association of A33-Ags with these patients as compared with healthy and cardiac controls (P=0.005), (P=0.033)

Background: Mitral regurgitation (MR) is the most commonly encountered valve lesion in modern clinical practice. Severe mitral regurgitation may cause systolic dysfunction. Left ventricular ejection fraction may not be an accurate measurement of LV function in patients with mitral insufficiency. Myocardial performance index (MPI) is a simple non invasive measure of myocardial function. Methods: The study involved 50 patients with valvular mitral regurgitation and 50 healthy subjects as a control group. Transthoracic echocardiography was carried out for all patients and control group. The echocardiographic measurements included left ventricular end diastolic and end systolic dimensions, left atrial diameter, ejection fraction (EF), and myoca

Trichomonas vaginalis is a unicellular flagellated protozoan that resides in female and male genital tract and considered the most prevalent sexually transmitted infectious parasite. The infection rate is relatively equivalent between male and female but trichomoniasis is usually asymptomatic in men. Primary triggering of host inflammatory response to this parasite is not fully understood and most studies address the local reaction of the parasite in female genital tract. In this study, two pro-inflammatory cytokines, IL-8 and IL-12, were investigated in the serum of infected women with Trichomonas vaginalis during acute and chronic stages of the disease. The results demonstrated that the level of IL-8 was significantly

Adipokines are associated with insulin resistance and obesity-related metabolic
disorders in many diseases. The levels of Lipocalin-2 and Retinol binding protein-4
were evaluated in sera of patients with Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) to study the
association between them and the inflammatory state as established by high levels of
C - reactive protein and with atherogenicity. Serum Lipocalin-2 and Retinol binding
protein-4 levels measured in 73 subjects: 48 patients with T2DM with the mean
level of C- reactive protein 23.989 mg/dL. For comparison, 25 age- and gendermatched
control participants enrolled with C- reactive protein CRP level 1.476
mg/dL. The results showed that circulating Lipocalin-2, and Retinol binding prot