Introduction: A Pap test can detect pre-cancerous and cancerous cells in the vagina and uterine cervix. Cervical cancer is the easiest gynecologic cancer to be prevented and diagnosed using regular screening tests and follow-up. This study aimed to estimate the cytological changes and the precancerous lesions using Pap smear test and visual inspection of the cervices of Iraqi women, and also to determine the possible relationship of this cancer with patients’ demographic characteristics. Methods: The study included 140 women aged (18-67) years old referred to the National Cancer Research Center (NCRC), Baghdad, Iraq, during the period 2011-2016. Both visual inspections of the uterine cervix and Papanicolaou smear screening were performed for all of the participants. Results: Only 14% of the women under study were in postmenopausal, and 86% were in premenopausal period. Visual inspection of the cervix showed that 48.6% of the women had erosion lesions. Upon cytology examination, 92.8% of the women showed non-specific inflammation, 70% revealed reactive squamous metaplasia, 27% had Koilocytotic atypia, and 17% suffered from cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN1) or low grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (LGSIL). Contraception was used by 68% of those women, while 34.3% of them used pills. Most women, 79%, had multiple births. The abnormal vaginal discharge occurred in 34% of the participants that is why they attended the center compared with only 25.7% who came for routine checking. Finally, 67% of the participated women did not make this test previously. Conclusion: We conclude routine screening and Pap smear testing for uterine cervix and vagina might be useful especially for sexually active women for preventing the occurrence of precancerous and later cancerous lesions in these organs.
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A novel demountable shear connector for precast steel-concrete composite bridges is presented. The connector uses high-strength steel bolts, which are fastened to the top flange of the steel beam with the aid of a special locking nut configuration that prevents bolts from slipping within their holes. Moreover, the connector promotes accelerated construction and overcomes the typical construction tolerance issues of precast structures. Most importantly, the connector allows bridge disassembly. Therefore, it can address different bridge deterioration scenarios with minimum disturbance to traffic flow including the following: (1) precast deck panels can be rapidly uplifted and replaced; (2) connectors can be rapidly removed and replaced; and (
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The temperature control process of electric heating furnace (EHF) systems is a quite difficult and changeable task owing to non-linearity, time delay, time-varying parameters, and the harsh environment of the furnace. In this paper, a robust temperature control scheme for an EHF system is developed using an adaptive active disturbance rejection control (AADRC) technique with a continuous sliding-mode based component. First, a comprehensive dynamic model is established by using convection laws, in which the EHF systems can be characterized as an uncertain second order system. Second, an adaptive extended state observer (AESO) is utilized to estimate the states of the EHF system and total disturbances, in which the observer gains are updated
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The conservation for biodiversity in Iraqi freshwater environments is important to protecting native species from the environmental impacts of alien species. Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) (Siluriformes, Clariidae) has been recognized as an alien species in Iraqi water bodies. This study aims to use molecular DNA to identify this catfish and trace its origins using. The DNA sequences of C. gariepinus were done using the mitochondrial DNA cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) gene, and a specific primer set. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification was used to align the COI gene as a barcoding marker. After analysis, the sequences were compared with sequences in the National Center for Biology Information (NCBI) database
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