Background: Vitamin D deficiency/ insufficiency is common in different age groups in both genders especially among pregnant women and neonates where it is associated with several adverse outcomes including preeclampsia and preterm delivery. Objectives: To assess the extent of vitamin D deficiency/ insufficiency among mothers and their neonates and some factors related to it and identify some adverse outcomes of the deficiency/ insufficiency on neonates (preterm birth and low birth weight). Subject and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 88 Iraqi pregnant women and neonates admitted to “Al-Elwiya teaching hospital for maternity” in Baghdad- Al-Rusafah from 1st of June 2019 to 31st of August 2019. Data about maternal age, mode of delivery, sex, weight, and gestational age were obtained. Vitamin D levels of mothers and their neonates were measured by Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). Results: In a total of 88 mothers and neonates, 96.6% of mothers had Vitamin D deficiency/ insufficiency compared to (86.4%) of neonates. There was a statistically significant difference between maternal and neonatal vitamin D levels. Neonatal Vitamin D levels were positively correlated with maternal vitamin D levels. Neonatal weight was positively correlated with maternal Vitamin D levels. The mean maternal and neonatal vitamin D levels were (12.16 ng/ml ± 7.06) and (20.25 ng/ml ± 10.97) respectively. Conclusions: Vitamin D deficiency/ insufficiency was prevalent among mothers and neonates; with a higher prevalence among mothers. Maternal Vitamin D levels and neonatal weights were associated with neonatal Vitamin D levels.
Free radicals and oxidative damage caused by them have being suggested to be involved in the pathogenesis of migraine. These may result from distorted equilibrium of pro-oxidant/anti-oxidant system that continuously generates and detoxifies oxidants during normal aerobic metabolism. Escape of such system from equilibrium leads to damage of cellular elements with the depletion of cellular stores of anti-oxidants material such as glutathione and vitamin E. Therefore, free radical scavengers (vitamin E or melatonin) seems to be of potential benefit as prophylactic anti-migraine therapy by neutralizing free radicals overproduction and possibly preventing formation of highly toxic intermediates (such as nitric oxide). In addition of being pow
... Show MoreBackground: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is considered a global disease as it affects over 150 million people worldwide, a number that is supposed to be doubled by 2025. High glucose levels, in vitro, appear to raise the extent of LDL oxidation, and glycated LDL is more prone to oxidative modification.Objective: To investigate the relationship between serum level of vitamin E and lipid profile in patients with type II DM.Methods: This study involved 28 patients suffering from type II DM diagnosed 1-4 years ago and with age ranged from 17 -60 years old, with different residence around Basra ; In addition to 56 apparently healthy persons matched in age and sex to the patients as a control group. The medical histories were taken and Gene
... Show MoreBackground: While warfarin and direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) are used to manage thromboembolic events, they possess several features that impact adherence. Objective: To assess medication adherence and self-efficacy in patients receiving warfarin or DOAC treatment. Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed at Ibn Al-Bitar Hospital in Baghdad from December 2022 to May 2023 on patients receiving either warfarin or DOACs. The Arabic version of the Adherence to Refills and Medications Scale (ARMS) questionnaire and the Self-Efficacy for Managing Chronic Disease 6-Item Scale (SES6C) questionnaire were used to assess adherence and self-efficacy. Results: 181 patients were enrolled in the study, of whom 56.9% received warfarin an
... Show MoreBackground: Lateral cephalometric radiography is commonly used as a standard tool in orthodontic assessment and treatment planning. This study aimed to determine the tongue and surrounding space area in a sample of Iraqi adults with class I dental and skeletal pattern. Materials and methods: The study included thirty healthy subjects (15 males and 15 females) with an age ranged between 23-34 years and class I dental and skeletal pattern with no history of any sleep related disorders. The assessed cephalometric measurement included length and height of the tongue and position of hyoid bone from cervical line. Descriptive statistics were obtained for the data. Genders difference was evaluated by independent sample t-test. Results: There wer
... Show MoreAnkylosing spondylitis (AS) represents one kind of advanced arthritis formed via inflammatory stimuli long-term in the spin‘s joints. Interleukin (IL)-29 (interferon- lambda1(IFN- λ1)), interleukin (IL)-28A (interferon- lambda 2 (IFN- λ2)) and interleukin (IL)-28B (interferon- lambda 3(IFN-λ3)) are three interferon lambda (IFN- λs) molecules that have recently been identified as new members of the IFN family. IL-28B expression in ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is not well understood. 150 male healthy controls ((HC) and 160 males with AS as patients group participated in this study. Serum level and gene polymorphism were assessed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and Sanger sequencing for IL-28B, respectively. The results showed
... Show MoreBACKGROUND: Hospital training courses for pharmacy students were required to prepare students to meet the challenges of real-world hospital work. AIM: Because there have been few studies on the efficacy of such courses, we aimed to recognize recent graduates’ perceptions, benefits, and factors influencing the quality of hospital training courses for pharmacy students. METHODS: A qualitative study using a phenomenology approach was conducted in 2022 and included several hospitals in Baghdad, Iraq, using in-depth face-to-face individual-based semi-structured interviews. Until saturation, a convenient sample of recently graduated pharmacists was included. The obtained data were analyzed using a thematic content analysis approach
... Show MorePharmaceutical care is a patient-centered, outcomes oriented practice that requires the pharmacist to work in concert with the patient and the patient’s other healthcare providers to promote health, to prevent disease, and to assess, monitor, initiate, and modify medication use to assure that drug therapy regimens are safe and effective. In addition, the presence of clinical pharmacists has led to a higher quality of patient education and provision of complete detailed information for patients. In developed countries Pharm D has become the professional degree for practice of Pharmacy. The graduates will be enrolled in a pharmacy residency program; admission to the residency programs is available to Pharm D graduates of an accredit
... Show MoreFibromyalgia (FM) is a common, debilitating, and chronic pain syndrome. The women are more likely to have more tender points on examination than are their male counterparts. Iraqi study showed that FM occur in 1.5% among adolescents of Iraqi population. In compare to normal healthy women, present study was revealed that Iraqi women with FM have significant elevation of calcium (p = 0.003) with significant reduction of magnesium (p = 0.001), whereas the inorganic phosphorous was not differs (p = 0.31). In conclusion, magnesium and calcium would play a crucial role in etiopathogenesis of fibromyalgia.
Key words: calcium, magnesium, phosphorous, Fibromyalgia.
This study evaluated the knowledge and practice of breast self-examination (BSE), among a sample of educated Iraqi women. The study sample comprised 858 women aged 18–62 years affiliated to 6 major Iraqi universities, categorized according to occupation as teaching staff (11.5%), administrative staff (18.0%) and students (70.5%). Data were collected by a self-completed questionnaire. In all, 93.9% of the women had heard about BSE, the main source of information was television (39.9%), doctors (18.4%) and the awareness campaign of the Iraqi National Breast Cancer Research Programme (11.6%). Only 53.9% of the women practised BSE; the most common excuses by those that did not were lack of knowledge of the significance of BSE (42.0%) and lack
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