Background: Chronic cough is often the key
symptom not only of chronic pulmonary diseases
but for other important extrapulmonary
pathologies, in particular upper airway and
gastrointestinal diseases.
Objective: This study was designed to
determine the etiology of chronic cough and the
usefulness of the available diagnostic tests in
reaching its causes.
Methods: One hundred patients presenting with
chronic cough at Baghdad Teaching Hospital
Outpatient Clinic were enrolled in this study. The
patients underwent a full clinical interview,
physical examination with indicated diagnostic
test(s) (such as chest x ray, bronchoscope, PFT,
GIT study, sinus X ray or CT).
Results: An etiology of chronic cough was
determined in 93% of the patients. Post nasal drip
is the leading cause of chronic cough reported in
31% of the patient, while asthma gastroesophageal
reflux disease, and chronic bronchitis
seen in (26, 20, and 6 % respectively).
The diagnosis of chronic cough can be reached by
comprehensive history, proper physical
examination, and chest X ray findings in 66 %
patients, further more sophisticated and invasive
tests like: PFT, upper GIT study , expectorated
sputum examination (AFB, Gram staining,
cytology), fibrooptic bronchoscope, and full ENT
evaluation including sinuses X ray or sinuses CT
scanning, are need in the rest.
Conclusion: The etiology of chronic cough can
often be diagnosed safely with a simple initial
evaluation (history, physical examination and
chest X-ray). Postnasal drip, asthma and
gastroesophageal reflux disease account for the
etiology in more than three quarter of the patients.
The mean age of AS patients was (35.0 ± 9.8) years.When the patients and control subjects were divided into different age groups (>40, 30-40, <30 years), the differences were not significantin terms of disease prevalence. The results also showed that the percentage of male patients is higher than that of females. There was no significant difference (P?0.05) between patients and controls in the distribution of males and females.Most of the patients had the disease for a period of 5 years or higher, with a disease severity of ? 2.1 and functional disability degree of I, II. The resultsshoweddifferent patterns of distribution for the three tested cytokines. A significant increase in the level of TNF-?, anon-significantincrease i
... Show MoreTo evaluate impact the difference in stages ofage and related incidence of hemodialysis patients.Two hundred and fifty patients undergoing hemodialysis were collected from general hospital in Baghdad city /Iraq. The samples with renal failure before hemodialysis were divided into (138) male,( 112)female. The sera were separated from samples to physiological investigation. We found that renal failure was more predominant among the patients ages group ranging from (51-70) years old. The results shows A significant increase in the levels of urea, creatinine, in younger patients (≤ 30 years) when compared with older patients (>70 years). Furthermore a significant decrease in serum levels of total protein in patients in older patients (>7
... Show MoreHypothyroidism is a frequent disorder in the general population, especially among women, is defined as adeficiency of thyroid activity that results from insufficient production or action of thyroid hormones leading to a totaldecrease of metabolic. Human leukocyte antigen is the most polymorphic genetic system in man. Genes of this regioninfluence susceptibility to certain diseases.Objectives: The purpose of the present study is to investigate the role of HLA-DRB1 genotyping in hypothyroidpatients with and without periodontitis. Sixty hypothyroid patients 30 of patients were with periodontitis and 30without periodontitis compare with 30 healthy subjects as control enrolled in this study. DNA was extracted fromblood samples, then HLA- genotyp
... Show MoreHelicobacter pylori (HP) is the etiopathogenic agent of gastric and duodenal disorders ranging from gastritis to malignancy. It is also associated with many extraintestinal diseases, including cardiovascular disease and its associated risk factors. To evaluate the link between HP infection and some cardiovascular risk factors by studying the effects of HP infection on body mass index, blood pressure, and serum lipid profile among patients having gastritis with and without HP infection. A crosssectional study included 1214 patients who had gastritis diagnosed by gastroscopy examination. Those patients were in the age range of 30-65 years and they were divided according to their gender into 725 females and 489 males depending on the 1
... Show MoreCopper (Cu) Zinc (Zn) and Magnesium (Mg) in serum, RBC, urine and dialyzate fluids were
studied in 39 patients, who have been undergoing chronic haemodialysis treatment. They were
divided in to polyuric , oliguric and anuric depending on their urinary output. Elevated serum and
RBC Mg was observed before dialysis, while decreased serum and RBC level was noticed except
serum Mg of polyuric patients. Before dialysis elevated serum and RBC Zn were observed. While
after dialysis these parameters were increased. Normal RBC Cu value before dialysis was observed.
While low serum Cu was noticed. After dialysis serum Cu showed raised value, while RBC level
decreased in oliguric and increased in polyuric patients. Zn / Cu rati
This study was conducted to determine the relationship between two most common diseases in Iraqis patients , which are Diabetic mellitus (DM) and Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA); seeking rheumatoid factor in hyperglycemic sera. The results revealed that ; 62.5% of hyperglycemic (HG) patients had positive rheumatoid factor (RF) . No difference in number between both gender of HG patients (20 males and 20 females ) , RF reaction was nearly similar in males and females of HG patients ( 12 &13 respectively ) . Only 40% out of patient controls had positive RF . None of the apparently healthy subjects had positive RF .
Background: Psoriasis is a common inflammatory condition worldwide, with an average prevalence ranging from 2% to 3%. However, the incidence of psoriasis varies among different ethnic groups and regions. Elevated leptin levels have been associated with increased cellular proliferation, including T-cells. Additionally, high leptin levels may stimulate the synthesis of proinflammatory cytokines such as ILـ6 and TNFـα. Objectives: To evaluate the effect of Apremilast on Leptin in obese psoriatic patients. Subjects and Methods: Thirty patients with psoriasis were included in This prospective cohort study to measure the levels of serum Leptin by using the ELISA technique, before and after receiving Apremilast. Result: The present work
... Show MoreRecurrent respiratory tract infections are responsible for about 85% of all diseases in childhood, and are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study is to evaluate the main causes underlying recurrent respiratory tract infections in 176 pediatric patients aged 2 month to 4 year and weight from 4 to11 kg referred to the child center hospital and Al-sader hospital prospective study.All parents were given information sheet which then analyzed and the percentage of incidence of causes were recorded, we found that higher % related to many causes; mostly related to the parent like poor family education, mother carelessness, incomplete vaccination, other related to empirical diagnosis, and short course of t
... Show MoreOne of the major health problems causing defects or damage to one or more of the four heart valves [aortic, mitral, pulmonary, and tricuspid] is valvular heart disease [VHD]; it occurs due to congenital abnormalities or acquired pathology. It is a defect that results in weak heart valves and is therefore unable to function as precise pathways of the blood. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the ferroxidase activity of ceruloplasmin (Cp) and the lipid profile of valvular heart disease patients in sera. Ninety subjects were included in this study and 60 patients with HDV were divided into two subgroups according to the affected valve: 33 patients with aortic valve disease (AV) and 27 patients
Introduction and Aim: Forkhead box P3 (FOXP3) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) are the key regulators controlling the activity of Treg cells, which are crucial for maintaining immune tolerance and reducing autoimmune reactions. The objective of this study was to investigate the potential utility of elevated levels of FOXP3 and IL-10 gene expression as a diagnostic indicator in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Materials and Methods: The study used quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) to examine the expression levels of FOXP3 and IL-10 transcripts in whole blood samples from Iraqi patients with rheumatoid arthritis. A group of healthy control subjects were also included in the study. Results: In blood samples taken fr
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