Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease with polymorphic expression. B cells have an essential contribution in immune system activation via the production of different cytokines and functioning as potent antigen-presenting cells. Therefore, a drug that particularly targets B cells may represent an ideal therapeutic approach for SLE. Rituximab (RTX), an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody causing transient B-cell depletion, has been used to manage SLE. This study aims to assess Rituximab effects on lupus nephritis (LN) patients when added to conventional immunosuppressants. Twenty four patients, 15-32 years old, with class III/IV/V LN were involved in this study. All were on steroids before lupus nephritis occurrence. They were given rituximab induction therapy and mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) maintenance therapy. RTX was indicated for refractory and relapsing SLE. Several investigations done before and after RTX treatment and in the last follow up (done one year after starting Rituximab). Those included protein in urine, serum creatinine, double stranded DNA, C3, C4, and Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR). Proteinuria decreased significantly after RTX treatment and in the last measurement (P=0.01 and P=0.001, respectively). Serum creatinine significantly decreased only in the last measurement (P=0.02). Double stranded DNA decreased remarkably after treatment (P=0.01) with a further decrease in the last measurement (P=0.006). C3 and C4 increased after treatment but the increase was significant only for C3 (P=0.002) and this increase continues till the last measurement (P=0.0006). Active urine sediments found in fifteen patients and disappeared after RTX treatment. Rituximab can be promising in treating lupus nephritis when used along with traditional immunosuppressants. It can reduce disease activity and improve renal function in such patients.
Objectives: The current study aims to evaluate parents' knowledge towards diabetes mellitus (type I); to identify the association between parents' knowledge and their demographic characteristics; and to identify the association between parents' knowledge and demographic characteristics of their children. Methodology: Descriptive study carried out during the period from January to April 2015 on purposive sample of 100 parents with their children with diabetes mellitus who attending diabetes and endocrine treatment center. An evaluation tool is constructed by the researcher based on previous literature regarding
Background: Sclerotherapy is a simple treatment modality for treatment of infantile hemangioma and slow-flow vascular malformations; Polidocanol is a mild sclerosing agent that is traditionally used in treatment of varicose veins. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness, treatment outcome, and complications of polidocanol foam sclerotherapy for infantile hemangioma and slow-flow vascular malformations. Materials and methods: Between March 2013 and December 2014, seventeen patients with infantile hemangioma and slow-flow vascular malformations treated with polidocanol 1% foam sclerotherapy. Foam was prepared by Tessari’s method. Injection performed under general or local anesthesia, injections were repeated (if necessary) on mon
... Show MoreBackground: Direct measurement of intracellular magnesium using erythrocytes has been suggested as a sensitive indicator for the estimation of body magnesium store. Marked depletion in plasma and erythrocyte magnesium levels was particularly evident in diabetic patients with advanced retinopathy and poor diabetic control. While insulin has been shown to stimulate erythrocyte magnesium uptake, hyperglycemia per se suppressed intracellular magnesium in normal human red cells.
Aim of the study: To investigate the erythrocyte magnesium level in Iraqi type I and II diabetic patients, with specific emphasis on the effect of both, metabolic control and the type of antidiabetic treatments.
Methods: Sixty two diabetic patients (7 with type
Background: human paillomavirus infections (genital warts) are the most frequent sexually transmitted viral infections. a wide range of treatment options is available with different efficacy.
Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of podophyllin, trichloracetic acid (TCA) in the treatment of genital warts and side effects of them.
Subjects and methods: a total of sixty patients with genital warts were randomly selected, 30 in each group, in the Department of Dermatology, medical city for a Duration of 11 months from January 2009 to December 2009 treated with 35 % podophyllin in the tincture of benzoin or 50% TCA) .Forty-eight patients were followed up for three months.
Results: wart
... Show MoreIntroduction: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a common protozoan disease in Iraq characterized by localized ulcers, primarily on exposed skin. This study aimed to investigate the hematological parameters of infected patients using a complete blood count (CBC) in the endemic area of Diyala Governorate, northeast of Baghdad. This has been studied in newly diagnosed, untreated individuals and patients receiving sodium antimony gluconate. Methodology: Hematological screening was performed on blood samples from 161 patients with microscopically diagnosed cutaneous leishmaniasis before and after treatment. Anti-Leishmania IgG was also assessed by ELISA in seropositive and seronegative subjects. Results: The newly diagnosed, untreated pati
... Show MorePrograms and performance budget represents a sophisticated method of public budget numbers, which includes all allocations to be determined for each job or activity within a government entity, which is analyzed according to their needs and costs, and this method can be applied using one of the cost accounting techniques, which is the technique of analyzing the value chain that reduces costs by avoiding activities that do not add value and enhance activities that add value to the economic entity, the current research aims to develop the budget system in government entity by using the budget of programs and performance as a tool for planning and monitoring events and activities, thereby reducing the waste of public money by reducing unnecessa
... Show MoreThe performance of a synergistic combination of electrocoagulation (EC) and electro-oxidation (EO) for oilfield wastewater treatment has been studied. The effect of operative variables such as current density, pH, and electrolyte concentration on the reduction of chemical oxygen demand (COD) was studied and optimized based on Response Surface Methodology (RSM). The results showed that the current density had the highest impact on the COD removal with a contribution of 64.07% while pH, NaCl addition and other interactions affects account for only 34.67%. The optimized operating parameters were a current density of 26.77 mA/cm2 and a pH of 7.6 with no addition of NaCl which results in a COD removal efficiency of 93.43% and a specific energy c
... Show MoreA novel series of liquid crystalline compounds containing 2,4-thiazolidinedione units with varying terminal alkyl chain lengths was successfully synthesized and characterized. The chemical structures of the synthesized compounds were confirmed by FT-IR, ¹H-NMR, and mass spectrometry. The mesomorphic behavior was investigated using polarized optical microscopy (POM) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Compounds [V]₄, [V]₅, and [V]₆ exhibited enantiotropic nematic phases, while compound [V]₈ displayed a smectic A (SmA) phase. No liquid crystalline behavior was observed for compound [V]₃. The liquid crystalline properties were found to depend on the terminal-to-lateral chain length ratio, molecular geometry, and the nature
... Show MoreAbstract:
Saudi Arabia and United States long relation could present an important
subject to understand alliance kind in international relations types. We trying
in this study to diagnose and analyze the Saudi Arabia and United States
model to find balance and unbalance statues and its influence on the
directions of Saudi Arabia foreign policy positions.
We divided the study in two parts, each part have many sections. The
first part deal with the historian emergence of Saudi Arabia state and its
development in three stages including its foreign relations with regions and
international powers. While the second part was dedicated in analyzing and
understanding the mechanism and active facts that drawing the Sa