Background: Quality of life in brain tumor patients is an emerging issue and has prompted neurosurgeons to recon¬sider the need for cognitive assessment in the course of treatment. To date there has been a lack of comprehensive neuropsychological assessment performed preoperatively and in the acute postoperative period in our hospitals.Objectives: to establish the effects of tumors and their surgical treatment, from a neuropsychological perspective, on cognitive functioning in patients with cerebral Gliomas. Methods: This is a prospective study conducted in the Neurosurgical Hospital in Baghdad, Iraq, during the period from January 1999 to January 2001. Any patient admitted during the period of the study with clinical history, signs, symptoms, and contrast enhanced MRI suggesting a cerebral glioma and confirmed by postoperative histopathological results of glioma has been included in this study. While multifocal lesions, long-lasting epilepsy, use of antiepileptic therapy, multiple cranial lesions, previous cranial surgery, any chronic illness, and histopathological result of other tumors were exclusion criteria. All patients were at their first operation for brain tumors. Patients were examined by analyzing several functional domains (intelligence, executive functions, memory, language, praxis, gnosis and mood state) in order to establish the effect of tumor and surgery on cognition.Results: 29 patients who fulfilled the selection criteria were included. Mean duration of clinical history was 5 months (range 1–9 months). At baseline, using test- and domain-based criteria, 79% and 38% of patients, respectively, were impaired, the former related to tumor factors such as edema (P < 0.05), larger size (P < 0.05) and higher grade (P = 0.001). Verbal memory, visuospatial memory and word fluency were the most frequently affected functions, partly associated with depression. Postoperatively, 38% and 55% of patients, respectively, were unchanged, 24% and 21% improved, and 38% and 24% worsened; 24% and 62% of patients were intact, respec-tively.Conclusions: The extent of removal did not influence the outcome. Improvement involved previously impaired functions and was correlated with high-grade tumors. Worsening regar¬ded executive functions was related to tumor size and was partly explained by radiological findings on postoperative MRI. This prospective study, focusing on the effects of tumor and surgery, showed that tumor significantly affects cognitive func¬tions, mainly due to the mass effect and higher grading. Surgical treatment improved the functions most frequently affected preoperatively and caused worsening of execu¬tive functions soon after operation, leaving the overall cognitive burden unchanged and capable of improvement prospectively.
Support vector machine (SVM) is a popular supervised learning algorithm based on margin maximization. It has a high training cost and does not scale well to a large number of data points. We propose a multiresolution algorithm MRH-SVM that trains SVM on a hierarchical data aggregation structure, which also serves as a common data input to other learning algorithms. The proposed algorithm learns SVM models using high-level data aggregates and only visits data aggregates at more detailed levels where support vectors reside. In addition to performance improvements, the algorithm has advantages such as the ability to handle data streams and datasets with imbalanced classes. Experimental results show significant performance improvements in compa
... Show MoreDifferent additives are used in drilling fluids when the demanded properties cannot be gotten with clays. Drilling muds needs several additives and materials to give good characteristics. There are local alternatives more suitable for enhancing the rheology and filtration of drilling fluids. An experimental work had been conducted to assess the suitability of using potato starch to enhance rheological properties and filtration in drilling mud. This study investigated the potato starch as a viscosifier and fluid losses agent in drilling fluid. Results from this study proved that rheological properties of potato starch mud increased when pH of drilling fluid is increased. Potato starch could be used to enhance gel strength at low pH
... Show MoreThe adsorption isotherms and kinetic uptakes of CO2 were measured. Adsorption isotherms were measured at two temperatures 309 K and 333 K and over a pressure range of 1 to 7 bar. Experimental data of CO2 adsorption isotherms were modeled using Langmuir, Freundlich and Temkin. Based on coefficient of correlation it was found that Langmuir isotherm model was well suited with the experimental data of CO2 adsorption isotherms. In addition, Adsorption kinetic of CO2 mixture with N2 containing 10 % by volume CO2 and 90 % by volume N2 were determined in a temperature 36 °C and under the atmospheric pressure .When the flow rate was increased from
... Show MoreThe development of technology used in computerized programs is considered on of the most important topics that is responsible for creating tools that can be used in the business environment, the audit profession is one of those professions that received this development. In order for this profession to be more effective, there must be a tool based on sound (correct) scientific basis that can be based upon to enhance the quality of auditing. The research also aims to propose a computerized program to plan the auditing process according to the methods appropriate to the working environment in the audit offices and companies in Iraq. The computerized program was applied to the research sample and the hypothesis of the research has been prov
... Show MoreIn this work ,medical zinc oxide was produced from zinc scraps instead of traditional method which used for medical applications such as skin diseases, Iraq is importing around 50 ton/year for samarra plant the producted powder has apartical size less than 5 micron and the purity was more than 99.98%,also apilot plant of yield capacitiy 15 kg/8hours wsa designed and manufactured .
The construction of embankment for roadway interchange system at urban area is restricted due to the large geometry requirements, since the value of land required for such construction is high, and the area available is limited as compared to rural area. One of the optimum solutions to such problem is the earth reinforcement technique which requires a limited area for embankment construction. Gypseous soil from Al-Anbar governorate area was obtained and subjected to various physical and chemical analysis to determine it is properties. A laboratory model box of 50x50x25 cm was used as a representative embankment; soil has been compacted in five layers at maximum dry density (modified compaction) and an aluminum reinforcement strips we
... Show MoreIn this work, the antibacterial effectiveness of face masks made from polypropylene, against Candida albicans and Pseudomonas aeruginosa pathogenic was improved by soaking in gold nanoparticles suspension prepared by a one-step precipitation method. The fabricated nanoparticles at different concentrations were characterized by UV-visible absorption and showed a broad surface Plasmon band at around 520 nm. The FE-SEM images showed the polypropylene fibres highly attached with the spherical AuNPs of diameters around 25 nm over the surfaces of the soaked fibres. The Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) of pure and treated face masks in AuNPs conform to the characteristics bands for the polypropylene bands. There are some differences
... Show MoreNowadays, the power plant is changing the power industry from a centralized and vertically integrated form into regional, competitive and functionally separate units. This is done with the future aims of increasing efficiency by better management and better employment of existing equipment and lower price of electricity to all types of customers while retaining a reliable system. This research is aimed to solve the optimal power flow (OPF) problem. The OPF is used to minimize the total generations fuel cost function. Optimal power flow may be single objective or multi objective function. In this thesis, an attempt is made to minimize the objective function with keeping the voltages magnitudes of all load buses, real outp
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