Introduction: Although it is discouraged, community pharmacy customers can obtain oral corticosteroids (OCSs) without prescriptions from some community pharmacies in Iraq. Medication abuse is defined as the use of medication for non-medical reasons. Objectives: The study aimed to determine demographics, beliefs, and perceptions associated with the abuse of oral corticosteroids for non-illness reasons among community pharmacy customers. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in fall 2018 in four provinces in Iraq. Customers of 19 community pharmacies asking for OCSs for themselves without a prescription were administered a paper survey. This study used the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) to measure the relationship between the motivational factors and the abuse of OCSs. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to evaluate the relationships between the use of OCSs for non-illness and six TRA factors: Normative belief, behavioral belief, evaluation of the behavior, motivation to comply, subjective norms and attitude toward behavior. Results: The study enrolled 141 participants (98 women and 43 men) taking asking for OCSs without prescription. Dexamethasone was the most commonly used OCSs (59.6%). Friends were the primary recommenders for corticosteroids abuse (28.4%). The main reasons for using OCSs were to increase appetite and gain weight (53.9 %). Approximately one-third (36.2 %) of the participants gained weight after using OCSs. The regression analysis of the TRA variables showed two factors were significantly related to the abuse of OCSs. Age had a significant inverse relationship with the abuse of OCSs and the "good appearance" belief had a significant positive association with OCS abuse. Conclusion: Some Iraqi community pharmacy customers use non-prescribed oral corticosteroids to increase appetite and gain weight. Improve body appearance represents the dominant incentive that urges people to use OCSs without prescription. Health officials and healthcare practitioners need to promote people's awareness about the risks of misusing OCSs through education programs and advertisements in public health settings, media, and social media. Article Type: Original Research
Iraq has witnessed development in many fields and the electricity production sector is one of the most important of these fields. This is attributed to the State’s philosophy in supporting this sector through the development of economic development projects to serve and raise the level of the Iraqi individual. Electricity production in Iraq is affected by many variables such as load growth, economic and financial conditions, planning, etc. All these led to a disparity in the production of electric power to cover the demand for energy. The paper deals with the electricity generation sector overview in Iraq, Analysis of the effects of variables on the implementation of power generatio
Recycling process presents a sustainable pavement by using the old materials that could be milled, mixed with virgin materials and recycling agents to produce recycled mixtures. The objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of water on recycled asphalt concrete mixtures, and the effect of the inclusion of old materials into recycled mixtures on the resistance of water damage. A total of 54 Marshall Specimens and 54 compressive strength specimens of (virgin, recycled, and aged asphalt concrete mixtures) had been prepared, and subjected to Tensile Strength Ratio test, and Index of Retained Strength test. Four types of recycling agents (used oil, oil + crumb rubber, soft grade asphalt cement, and asphalt cement + Su
... Show MoreElastic electron scattering form factors, charge density distributions and charge,neutron and matter root mean square (rms) radii for P24PMg, P28PSi and P32PS nuclei arestudied using the effect of occupation numbers. Single-particle radial wave functionsof harmonic-oscillators (HO) potential are used. In general, the results of elasticcharge form factors showed good agreement with experimental data. The occupationnumbers are taken to reproduce the quantities mentioned above. The inclusion ofoccupation numbers enhances the form factors to become closer to the data. For thecalculated charge density distributions, the results show good agreement withexperimental data except the fail to produce the hump in the central region for P28PSinucleus.
... Show MoreThe nephrotoxicity induced by methotrexate is a severe condition that greatly affects its therapeutic potential and has a significant inflammatory component. Fimasartan is an angiotensin receptor blocker that offers organ-protective effects and may be useful in mitigating renal injury. The present study explored the anti-inflammatory potential of two doses of fimasartan against methotrexate-mediated nephrotoxicity. Albino rats were intraperitoneally administered a single methotrexate (20 mg/kg). Intraperitoneal treatment with fimasartan (5 or 10 mg/kg/day) was initiated on day two after methotrexate injection and continued for seven consecutive days. Methotrexate significantly increased serum urea, creatinine, and NGAL concentrations. It al
... Show MoreThis research aims to identify the role of external environment factors on the quality of educational services, from the academic point of view, where the distribution of a questionnaire to a random sample of (100) university professors, and then analyzing a model, and test the validity of this model using structural modeling (SEM) (Structural Equation Modeling).
And then test the relationships between variables using the software of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS V.18), the research found a number of conclusions, the most important conclusion is: the external environment factors has significant impact on the quality of educational services.
There is a theoretical controversy in the books of Usul al-Fiqh, in the past and the present, about whether the ruling should be attached to its reason (al-Hikmah), or its apparent and stable cause (al-Illah). Looking at the practical cases of the jurists, we found them sometimes attaching rulings to its reason, and sometimes to its cause, so there is a need to know the factors that affect their choices. By extrapolation, the researcher reached at nine factors that affect referring the ruling to its cause or to its reason in jurisprudential cases.
In this thesis, we study the topological structure in graph theory and various related results. Chapter one, contains fundamental concept of topology and basic definitions about near open sets and give an account of uncertainty rough sets theories also, we introduce the concepts of graph theory. Chapter two, deals with main concepts concerning topological structures using mixed degree systems in graph theory, which is M-space by using the mixed degree systems. In addition, the m-derived graphs, m-open graphs, m-closed graphs, m-interior operators, m-closure operators and M-subspace are defined and studied. In chapter three we study supra-approximation spaces using mixed degree systems and primary object in this chapter are two topological
... Show MoreBackground: Prematurity and its complications are the major causes of neonatal and infant morbidity and mortality. Although the cause of preterm labor is often unknown, numerous etiological risk factors may be implicated. To identify the risk factors that lead to prematurity and assess the neonatal outcomes that preterm neonates may develop. Methods: This case-control study was conducted at AL-Elwiya Pediatric Teaching Hospital, Baghdad, Iraq, from the 1st of June to the 31st of December 2019. A non-randomized sample of 700 neonates admitted to the neonatal care unit was included in this study and divided into two groups of preterm full-term neonates as the experimental and control groups, respectively (n=350 each). The same questionnaire w
... Show MoreSouth Sudan is known by its tribal and racial variation .Tribal Perception represents the
procedure of dealings in Southern society .And that what make Sudan as a stable country that
suffer from divisions . Everybody wants to rule in spite of his inability and un qualification
which enables the establishment of an urbanized country .the frustration of the state in
handling the interior variety on religious, tribal and racial basis and contracting national
ideality in spared by shared ingredients between gathered groups in one state, all these reasons
make it hard to create a united national identity which is able to unite atheist and religious
parties together. Due to this ,the study is established to clarify the nat
This study focused on benthic algae (epipelic and attached algae on concrete lining stream) in Bani-Hassan stream in Holly Karbala, Iraq. The qualitative and quantitative studies of benthic algae were done by collecting 240 samples from five sites in the study area for the period from December 2012 to November 2013. Also, the environmental variables of the stream were examined in term of temporary and spatial. The results showed that the stream was alkaline, hard, oligohaline and a well aerated. The total nitrogen to the total phosphorus (TN: TP) ratio indicates nitrogen limitation. 129 species of benthic algae belonging to 57 genera were identified. Bacillariophyceae (diatoms) was the predominant taxon (95 species) followed by Chlorophyce
... Show More