Journal of Al-Farabi for Medical Sciences

Background: blood donation by human still the only source of blood and blood components. Generally, donors classified into voluntary blood donor, family (or replacement) blood donor and paid blood donors. The safest donors found among people who donate their blood is the voluntarily blood donation. The study of attitude, beliefs, and level of knowledge associated with blood donation may enhance the recruitment of donors to blood donation. Aim of the study: assessment of knowledge, attitude and, practice of voluntary blood donation among family donors in the National Center for Blood Transfusion (NCBT) to identify and recruit potential voluntary blood donors. Materials and methods: This is a cross-sectional descriptive study carried out at the National center for Blood Transfusion-Baghdad in the period between October 2022 and February 2023. A questionnaire form was prepared for the assessment. A Total of 100 family (replacement) blood donor were included in the study. Results: The median of age was 33 (mean 34 +SD 8.9) years with range of 20-53 years age. All donors were males. The largest group of the responders (41%) is of secondary level of education. Seventy (70%) donors know their blood group. Sixty-six (66%) donors know the most common blood group in the world. Fifty-nine (59%) donors do not know the volume of blood that collected during each donation; and only 30 (30%) donors know the volume of the donated blood. Sixty-four (64%) donors know the correct duration of donation process. Forty-seven (47%) donors think that the individual can donate blood 2 times in the year; 17 (17%) stated 3 and 21(21%) stated more than 3 donations. Forty five (45%) donors stated that viral diseases can transmitted by blood transfusion, 11(11%) donors believe that cancer transmitted by transfusion , 15(15%) donors stated that chronic disorder can be transmitted by transfusion, while 29(29%) don’t know the diseases that can be transmitted by blood transfusion. Attitude towards Blood Donation; 84(84%) donors stated that donation has no harmful effect on the donor, and 75(75%) donors think that blood donation is beneficial for heath. Fifty-six (56%) donors practice voluntarily donation previously while 44(44%) donors practice replacement donation only. Conclusions there is good attitude toward blood donation and good practice of voluntary non-remunerated donation among family blood donors , in contrary there is a defect in the information and knowledge regarding the volume of donated blood , frequency of donations and the disorders that can transmitted by blood transfusion.

Introduction: Nano dentistry has paved the way for advanced therapeutic opportunities in various dental disciplines, particularly in the improvement of oral health. One area of focus is the enhancement of mechanical properties of dental materials, such as acrylic resins commonly used in denture base materials. Various strategies, including chemical corrections and the addition of particles, have been explored to augment the mechanical qualities. This study investigates the impact of incorporating Gadolinium oxide nanoparticles into heat-cured acrylic denture materials. Materials and Methods: The denture base was processed using a standardized approach, with the addition of Gadolinium oxide nanoparticles during the monomer phase. A total of 120 specimens were fabricated. 30 specimens for each test using 10 specimens for each nanoparticle concentration (Control 0%, 1%, and 1,5% nanoparticles). The nanoparticles were dispersed using sonication to ensure uniform distribution. The study assessed properties such as glass transition temperature using a differential scanning calorimeter, impact strength and transverse strength utilizing an Instron universal testing machine, and surface roughness via profilometer measurements. Scanning electron microscope also utilized. One way ANOVA was used to determine the mean differences. Results: The study revealed significant improvements in glass transition temperature, impact strength, and transverse strength. The peak values were often seen in the 1.5% wt. group. Surface roughness, however, showed non-significant changes with nanoparticle additions, possibly due to the minimal involvement of nanoparticles on the outer surface. Conclusion: Incorporating Gadolinium oxide nanoparticles into heat-cured acrylic denture base materials demonstrated notable enhancements in key mechanical properties. The findings suggest that nanoparticle additions contribute to increased strength and rigidity, as evidenced by improvements in impact and transverse strength. However, surface roughness remained largely unaffected. This study contributes valuable insights into the potential benefits of nanotechnology in optimizing dental materials for improved clinical performance and patient outcomes.

Antibiotic resistance is a global threat to human and animal health especially when it related with a zoonotic disease like brucellosis which treated with the same bunch of antibiotic for long decades. This issue raised a question of whether Brucella spp. have gain resistance to the commonly used antibiotics. To study Brucella spp. antibiotic susceptibility, samples from (20) aborted fetuses (12 sheep and 8 buffalo) were used. It submitted to PCR and culture methods for detection and microbial isolation and (7) kinds of antibiotic for the susceptibility test. Fifteen Brucella culture was isolated (9) from sheep fetuses and (6) from buffalo. The biotyping of the isolates revealed that they were Br. melitensis and Br. abortus respectively. The overall agreement between PCR and culture reached (95%) with the superiority of PCR over microbiological culture. Susceptibility tests indicate that (tetracycline, ciprofloxacin and gentamicin) still efficient while rifampicin and cephalexin show moderate results at last comes neomycin and erythromycin which were not efficient. In conclusion, Brucella spp. did not gain resistance trait to the main antibiotic used in it treatment.

Cancer is a serious disease and it is one of the main causes of death, and it is considered the second cause, after people who suffer from heart failure. Through the statistics, Breast cancer is one of the most common types of cancer, with a rate of 99% in women and 1% in men. It is very complex, and patients with this type of cancer may face numerous challenges during their treatment period. It was determined that the death rate from cancer had decreased by 1.5%, but it is expected to increase in the future due to an increase in cancer cases (breast, prostate). Ehrlich model is a cancer that grows inside a mouse. Its origin is spontaneous mammary carcinoma, and when it spreads within the mouse, it takes two forms, either ascitic or solid. Ehrlich's ascites carcinoma is a spontaneous breast cancer that has a very high importance in scientific research. It is undifferentiated and has a short life. This type of cancer was used for the first time in 1932, when it was used inside the mouse in the abdomen, and a type of fluid was obtained for this called ( Ehrlich's ascites) due to the liquid substance on which cancer cells depend and consider it food and a means for rapid tumor growth, EAC deficiency causes anemia and thus causes a decrease in red blood cells or hemoglobin, EAC causes an increase in urea and a decrease in creatinine, and EAC causes an increase in liver enzymes and a decrease in total protein.Natural products are the only and most effective products that lead to the development of drugs, especially anti-cancer drugs and anti-inflammatories. Through studies, it has become clear that natural products are a source of drugs.

The Crohn’s disease (CD), which is state of recurrent systemic infections with gut symptoms that are related to immunological issues, this disease typically affects the digestive system. The CD is a type of Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Patients with CD have a genetic background and are affected by environmental variables and the gut microbiome. A blood sample of 30 patients from Iraq with CD and thirty samples of healthy people as control were taken in this study during the period from Jul 2022 to Dec 2022. Gastro-Enterology and Hepatology Hospital in Baghdad, Iraq is the place that the blood samples were taken from. Hematological test was performed on all samples and also measurement of IL-6 levels in serum. The results of this study show significant differences in hematological factors between patients and control also in levels of IL-6. The conclusion of this study is that interlukine-6 plays part in the progression of CD by neutrophils are drawn to the site of inflammation, and furthermore neutrophils cause more damage to the same site.

Mobile phones, despite their importance in daily life, can disseminate pathogens due to their frequent contact with hands. The purpose of the present study is to determine the prevalence of bacterial contamination on the mobile phones of healthcare personnel at the Baghdad Teaching Hospital, to identify the contaminating microorganisms, and to determine the preventive efficacy of 70% isopropyl alcohol. Sixty mobile phones from 40 physicians and 20 nurses were analyzed for microbial contamination. After collecting samples from each phone, they were disinfected with 70% isopropyl alcohol wipes and samples were recollected. Twenty four hours of aerobic and anaerobic incubation of agar plates at 37 °C. The results indicated that 34 (56.7%) out of 60 samples were contaminated with bacteria. Approximately 57.5% of the mobile phones used by physicians and 45% of those used by nurses contained microorganisms. Before disinfection, the most common bacteria found in mobile phones were coagulase-negative staphylococci, followed by Staphylococcus aureus, hemolytic (3.33%) and non-hemolytic (3.33%) Streptococci. While, E. coli and fungi contaminates were also found on mobile phone surfaces in equal percentage (6.67%). Following disinfection with 70% isopropyl alcohol, the number of bacteria was reduced to nil in 83.3% of the colonized mobile phones. This investigation demonstrated that commercially available, affordable and device safe wipes containing 70% isopropyl alcohol can significantly reduce mobile phone contamination. As a result, it is crucial for medical professionals to sterilize their mobile phones on a regular basis, as this can limit the dissemination of pathogens to patients and reduce the incidence of hospital acquired infections.