Background: Bell's palsy was defined as facial weakness of lower motor neuron type caused by idiopathic facial nerve involvement outside the central nervous system without evidence of aural or more widespread neurologic disease. The cause is unclear, but the disorder occurs more commonly in diabetics.Objectives: to differentiate cases of idiopathic Bell's palsy from diabetic mononeuropathy presented with Facial nerve palsy by assessing the taste, because they differ in etiology, management & prognosis.Patients &Methods: One hundred and fifteen consecutive patients were referred for the treatment of facial palsy, from May the 5th 2012 to April 12th 2013 in Al-Kindy Teaching Hospital and The Neurosciences Hospital, in Baghdad / Iraq. 70 diabetic patients and 45 non diabetics were involved to assay the taste.RESULTS: of the 115 patients with facial nerve palsy 70 (61%) were diabetics&45(39%) non-diabetics.No differences of age or gender were found between the two groups. From those 70 diabetic patients 15(34.9%) had change in taste, and , 55(76.4%)had no change in taste, while for non-diabetics; from total 45 patients 28(65.1) had change in taste, and 17 (23.6%) had no change, and this was statistically significant (p<0.001)CONCLUSION :Diabetic patients with isolated facial nerve palsy with sparing of taste sensation may be cases of diabetic mononeuropathy due to diabetic small vessel disease rather than concurrent cases of Bell’s palsy.
Background. Alopecia areata (AA) is a common form of noncicatricial hair loss of unknown cause, affecting 0.1-0.2% of the general population. Most evidence supports the hypothesis that it is disease of the hair follicle of autoimmune nature mediated by T-cells, with important cytokine role. Objective of the Study. The objective of this study is to study the association and changes in serum levels of interleukin-15 (IL-15) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in patients with AA in relation to the type, activity, and disease duration. Patients and Methods. Thirty-eight patients with AA and 22 individuals without the disease as controls were enrolled in this case-controlled study conducted in the Department of Dermatology in the Al-K
... Show MoreObjective Thalassemic patients present with multiple immune abnormalities that may predispose them to oral Candida, however this has not been investigated. The aim of this study was to assess oral candidal colonization in a group of patients with β-thalassemia major both qualitatively and quantitatively. Study design The oral mycologic flora of 50 β-thalassemia major patients and 50 age- and sex-matched control subjects was assessed using the concentrated oral rinse technique. Candida species were identified using the germ tube test and the Vitek yeast identification system. Results Oral Candida was isolated from 37 patients (74%) and 28 healthy subjects (56%; P = .04). The mean candidal count was significantly higher in thalassemic patie
... Show MoreBackground: psychiatric and behavioral side effects are
common in patients with epilepsy and it may represent an
intrinsic feature of the disease itself or a side effect of the
antiepileptic use. Our aim in the present study is to assess
the psychiatric side effects of Sodium Valproate and
Carbamazipine .as these drugs are the most commonly
used antiepileptic drugs in Iraq.
Methods: 80 patients with primary generalized epilepsy
on Carbamazipine and 50 patients on Sodium Valproate
were enrolled in the present study; all the patients were
assessed for any psychological disturbances using semistructural interview based on the tenth edition of the
international classification of the diseases(ICD 10)
adopte
Psoriasis is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory skin condition characterized by uncontrolled keratinocyte proliferation and potential systemic manifestations. Its pathogenesis involves activation of both innate and adaptive immune responses, leading to an imbalance in inflammatory cytokines. Interleukin (IL)-12 and IL-23 are key cytokines in the pathophysiology of psoriasis and sustain chronic skin inflammation. Biologic therapies, such as ustekinumab (UST), have been developed to induce long-term remission in moderate-to-severe psoriasis. The objective of this study was to identify differences in serum levels of inflammatory biomarkers [erythrocyte sedimentation rate, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), IL-12, IL-17, IL-22, and IL
... Show MoreBackground: Fluoropyrimidines are widely used in the treatment of various solid tumors. One-third of cancer patients develop severe treatment-related toxicity. A part of fluoropyrimidine-related toxicity arises due to impaired activity of dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD) caused by genetic variants in the DPYD gene. Objective: This study aims to determine the frequency of DPYD mutations among patients with adverse effects of 5-fluorouracil therapy. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study recruited 46 patients with 5-FU adverse effects. All demographic, clinical, and laboratory findings were recorded. Molecular testing was conducted to detect the DPYD mutation using the PGX-5FU StripAssay® kit, which identifies the IVS14 + 1G>
... Show MoreThe research aimed to diagnose and interpretation of impact nature between Communities of practice dimensions (participation and spreading knowledge, confidence, social capital build) deportation strategic change choices (reengineering business process, business re-structuring, business innovation) in construction companies in the Iraqi Ministry of Construction and Housing, the research tested 4 construction companies working in investing sector in Iraq, the research applied on a sample of 102 persons who participated in Communities of practice distributed in several administrative levels (directors, division directors, project directors and engineers) the research used questionnaire as a main tool for dat
... Show MoreStrategic Cost Management Tools Under Technological Development and Change in Customer Tastes Critical Studies
استهدف البحث تشخيص وتحليل الاسباب التي تجعل المرأة العراقية أكثر تأثراً من الرجل بعوامل التغيرات المناخية، فضلاً عن زيادة الوعي بقضية المرأة في هذا المجال، لأن موضوع دمجها في صياغة السياسات والاستراتيجيات المتعلقة بالتغير المناخي أصبح قضية عالمية، ويحتل مرتبة متقدمة في مؤشرات تحقيق أهداف التنمية المستدامة، وأستخدمت الباحثة المنهج الوصفي والتحليلي والاحصائي في تحليل محاور البحث، وتوصل البحث الى إستن
... Show MoreThe combined effects of glycemic dysregulation, dyslipidemia, and cellular stress responses lead to increased expression of glucose-regulated protein-78 (GRP-78), a key mediator in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) development. Due to its involvement in glucose and lipid metabolism, GRP-78 is considered a potential therapeutic biomarker. This study aimed to assess the impact of various antidiabetic medications on GRP-78 levels in individuals with T2DM. A cross-sectional study comprised 134 participants: 96 T2DM patients who were divided into patients under treatment with glucovance 500 (n=38), or insulin injection (n=42), and newly diagnosed diabetic patients (n=16). A control group of 38 healthy subjects were enrolled. Serum levels G
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