Background: Pleural effusion is a common clinical
problem.
Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the
diagnostic utility of Carcino embryonic antigen
(CEA), CA 15- 3, and alpha-feto protein ( AFP ) as
a tumor markers in serum and pleural effusion and
evaluate the value of combining them as a diagnostic
tools that are complementary to cytology in the
diagnosis of malignancies .
Methods: Forty patients (18 malignant and 22 benign
pleural effusion) were included in this study .The
serum and effusion levels of CEA, CA 15 – 3 and
AFP were measured using immunoradiometric assay
Results: from the 40 effusions studied 26 were
exudates and 14 were transudates. The level of
pleural effusions of CEA, CA 15 – 3 and AFP were
increased above the cutoffs in 72.5%, 94.4 % and 5.5
% of tested samples with malignancies respectively.
A direct strong significant correlation between serum
and pleural fluid CEA, CA 15 – 3 and AFP was
noted.
Conclusion: Pleural effusion CEA is the most
accurate marker for the diagnostic separation of
malignant and benign. The combination of both CEA,
CA 15 – 3 improves the sensitivity by up to 11 %.
AFP has no role in the process
This paper investigates the performance evaluation of two state feedback controllers, Pole Placement (PP) and Linear Quadratic Regulator (LQR). The two controllers are designed for a Mass-Spring-Damper (MSD) system found in numerous applications to stabilize the MSD system performance and minimize the position tracking error of the system output. The state space model of the MSD system is first developed. Then, two meta-heuristic optimizations, Simulated Annealing (SA) optimization and Ant Colony (AC) optimization are utilized to optimize feedback gains matrix K of the PP and the weighting matrices Q and R of the LQR to make the MSD system reach stabilization and reduce the oscillation of the response. The Matlab softwar
... Show MoreThe aim of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of diode laser (λ=940 nm) in the management of gingival hyperpigmentation compared to the conventional bur method. Materials and methods: Eighteen patients with gingival hyperpigmentation were selected for the study with an age between 12-37 years old. The site of treatment was the upper gingiva using diode laser for the right half and the conventional method for the left half. All patients were re-evaluated after the following intervals: 3 days, 7 days, 1 month and 6 months post-operation. Pain and functions were re-evaluated in each visit for a period of 1 day, 3 days and 1 week post-operation. Laser parameters included 1.5 W in continuous mode with an initiated tip (400 μm) placed in
... Show MoreWireless communications are characterized by their fastest growth in history, as they used ever-evolving and renewed technologies, which have allowed them to spread widely. Every day, communication technology introduces a new invention with features that differ from its predecessor. Bell Laboratories first suggested mobile wireless communication services to the general population in the late 1940s. Still, it wasn't easy at that time to use on a large scale due to its high costs. This paper aims to describe the state of cellular mobile networks; by comparing the sources of electromagnetic pollution caused by these networks, measure the level of power density in some residential areas, and compare them with international standards adopted in
... Show MoreThe aim of the current research is to identify the level of organizational culture among the headmasters and teachers of intermediate and secondary schools in Arar city. It also aims to identify the effect of job variables, qualifications, educational stage, and years of experience on the level of organizational culture and its domains. The research sample consisted of 62 participants divided into 7 headmasters and 55 teachers. The researcher used the questionnaire of the organizational culture. The researcher used also statistical methods such as mean, standard deviation, t-test, and One way ANOVA. The results revealed that the level of organizational culture and its four domains were high, and there was no effect of the variables (teac
... Show MoreBackground. Bone healing is a complex and dynamic process that represents a well-orchestrated series of biological events of cellular recruitment, proliferation, and differentiation. The use of medicinal plants in bone healing has attracted increasing interest because of their lower side effects. Punica granatum seed oil (PSO) contains high levels of phenolic compounds, promotes osteoblast function, and plays an important role in bone remodeling. A gelatin sponge (Spongostan) is a hemostatic agent that is extensively applied as scaffolds in engineering and as drug carriers in the medical field. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of PSO for bone healing enhancement. Twenty adult male New Zealand rabbits, weighing an avera
... Show MoreBackground: Porcelain veneers are under a great deal of stress which may lead to clinical failure as fracture or dettachment. This study examined whether different finishing lines and lingual shoulder preparations in the incisal area of the maxillary central incisor affect the bond of the porcelain veneers. Materials and methods: A two- dimensional finite element model was made. Location and magnitude of maximum Von Mises stresses were calculated in porcelain veneer. Six types of preparations were drawn as:incisal overlap of 0.5mm, 1mm and 1.5mm depth and lingual shoulder, and incisal overlap of 0.5mm, 1mm and 1.5mm depth without shoulder preparation. Results: Stress formation is maximum in the incisal edge region. All the lingual shoulder
... Show MoreThe physicochemical behaviour of dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide (DTAB) in water and ethanol-water mixture in the presence and absence of ZnSO4 were studied by measuring the conductivity at 298.15 K. The pre-micellar (S1) and post-micellar slopes (S2) were obtained and calculated the degree of dissociation (α) and the critical micelle concentration (cmc). With an increase in ethanol content, the cmc and α of DTAB increased whereas, in the presence of ZnSO4, the cmc and α decreased. By using cmc and α, thermodynamic properties as the standard free energy of micellization ( ) were evaluated. With an increase in ethanol content, the negative values of are decreased indicating less spont
... Show MoreEnticed by the present scenario of infectious diseases, four new Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II), and Cd(II) complexes of Schiff base ligand were synthesized from 6,6′-((1E-1′E)(phenazine-2,3-dielbis(azanylidene)-bis-(methanylidene)-bis-(3-(diethylamino)phenol)) (