Background: Urolithiasis and hypertension are prevalent and clinically significant conditions in the Middle East, both influenced by shared metabolic and environmental risk factors. Understanding the potential association between them is important for guiding prevention strategies. Objective: To explore the relationship between urolithiasis and hypertension in a sample of Iraqi adult patients. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted at Alkindy Teaching Hospital, Baghdad, from September 2024 to March 2025. Participants included 237 patients with confirmed urinary tract stones and 244 controls confirmed to be stone-free, matched for age and sex. Exclusion criteria included secondary hypertension, chronic kidney di

The geophysical testing is increasingly being employed in many geotechnical applications. It is preferred in monitoring the mechanical characteristics of the ground because of its economy, not time consuming and non-destructive nature. Seismic wave test is one of the geophysical methods which showed a potential in observing the general behaviour of the reinforced soil with stone columns. Findings in most cases showed that the seismic wave measurements was integrated with or compared to the conventional tests such as standard penetration test or cone penetration test. There was a noticeable success in identifying the enhancement achieved to the ground upon the strengthening with the column, specifically when the associated surveys can produc

Fibroepithelioma of Pinkus (FEP) is a slowly growing, low-grade malignant tumor with very low metastatic potential that is considered a distinct variant of basal cell carcinoma (BCC). It usually manifests as sessile or polypoidal lesions on the trunk of middle-aged patients. However, it may present in younger age groups, even in children. In this case, we present a rare case of FEP atypically presenting as a scaly plaque on the lower back for several years in an elderly female who was eventually diagnosed by excisional biopsy and histopathology.

Face recognition and identity verification are now critical components of current security and verification technology. The main objective of this review is to identify the most important deep learning techniques that have contributed to the improvement in the accuracy and reliability of facial recognition systems, as well as highlighting existing problems and potential future research areas. An extensive literature review was conducted with the assistance of leading scientific databases such as IEEE Xplore, ScienceDirect, and SpringerLink and covered studies from the period 2015 to 2024. The studies of interest were related to the application of deep neural networks, i.e., CNN, Siamese, and Transformer-based models, in face recogni

Polymeric hollow fiber membrane is produced by a physical process called wet or dry/wet phase inversion; a technique includes many steps and depends on different factors (starting from selecting materials, end with post-treatment of hollow fiber membrane locally manufactured). This review highlights the most significant factors that affect and control the characterization and structure of ultrafiltration hollow fiber membranes used in different applications.    

   Three different types of polymers (polysulfone PSF, polyethersulfone PES or polyvinyl chloride PVC) were considered to study morphology change and structure of hollow fiber membranes in this review. These hollow fiber membranes were manufactured with different pro

According to the famous saying of the medieval physician Paracelsus, "There is no substance without poison. Only the dose determines the extent of the toxic effect." Here, the effect of monosodium glutamate (MSG) on human health and the risks to the health of its frequent use in the short term was addressed and the long term was evaluated according to the studies of several researchers specializing in this regard. Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is known as one of the most popular food additives that classified as a flavor enhancer. Parts of the evidence were reviewed from the literature explaining its effect on immune system cells in addition to metabolic disorders by exposing individuals to obesity and what is known as metabolic syndrome, as w

Stealth marketing is considered as one of the contemporary issues that researchers have begun to explore as a current understanding. It is the marketing approach used by organizations to promote their products and services to the public in implicit and indirect manner. In this article, the concept of stealth marketing will be discussed throw its advantages and disadvantages. In addition, the different techniques of stealth marketing have been discussed including: viral marketing, celebrity marketing, brand pushers, bait-and-tease marketing, video games marketing, and marketing in music. Furthermore, a new technique of marketing entitled “Marketing through social responsibility” has been added and discussed according to the themes in the