Al-Iraqia Medical College Journal

Diarrhea is still one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among the very young, especially in developing countries. When used with high frequency, antibiotics are a significant part of the problem and a driving force behind the rise of antimicrobial resistance worldwide.
The present investigation concerns the extent of drug misuse in treating diarrhea among children under five years of age and mothers\\' knowledge and practices regarding diarrhea management.
A cross-sectional study was conducted in five Baghdad health facilities over a year, interviewing mothers of 300 under-5 children with acute diarrheal diseases. A structured questionnaire was used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. The study involved face-to-face interviews, ensuring participants understood the questions and provided informed consent.
Diarrhea mostly onsets suddenly (77.33). Fever is the most common symptom (32.33%), and only diarrhea is the most reported condition (40.67%). The majority of cases last less than 5 days (56%), 50% relied on artificial feeding. The most common reason for medication misuse is lack of awareness, with 50.67% of respondents citing it. Challenges in accessing healthcare also contribute to medication misuse. Most individuals rely on ORS for managing diarrhea, with 40% using antibiotics and 30% using anti-diarrheal medications as part of their treatment approach. The majority of cases reported no noticeable adverse effects, 77 cases suffered from dehydration due to improper treatment, 21 cases experienced the development of antibiotic resistance, and 27 cases showed a worsening of diarrhea symptoms. Suggestions by mothers regarding healthcare improvements include increasing awareness programs as most common, improving access to healthcare services, providing clearer guidelines on drug use, and reducing the cost of prescribed medications.
Most important factors contribute to drug misuse are lack of awareness, difficulty accessing healthcare, low of education, Misconceptions about the effectiveness of non-prescribed drugs, difficulties in accessing healthcare services and recurrent infection due to inadequate hygiene practices with over half of cases attributed to lack of awareness. Antibiotic misuse is particularly prevalent among types of drugs misuse with many administering antibiotics without a prescription.

In this study, an attempt was made to determine whether or not there is a connection between the pathogenesis of eight different RNA viruses (SARS-CoV-2, measles, mumps, seasonal influenza, avian influenza, human immunodeficiency, hepatitis C, and poliovirus) and the environmental and physical conditions that surround them. These conditions included the viruses ability to withstand heat and humidity, as well as the impact of ultraviolet radiation. The impacts of the acidity factor, the rate of transmission, and the size of the genome. In addition, the correlation with the vial mutation rates among the studied viruses were investigated. In general, the findings suggested that the following relationships exist: there is a direct relationship between virus susceptibility to infection and its heat tolerance; there is a positive relationship between virus susceptibility to infection and virus size; there is an inverse relationship between virus susceptibility to infection and high humidity; there is an inverse relationship between virus susceptibility to infection and the rate of mutation of the virus; and there is a positive relationship between virus size and the rate of mutation of the virus.

Autoimmune diseases (ADs) are chronic conditions resulting from immune system dysregulation. Psychological stress has been proposed as a modifiable factor that may contribute to both the onset and exacerbation of such diseases. However, little is known about how perceived stress levels influence medical students\' awareness of autoimmune diseases.
This study aimed to assess the level of awareness of autoimmune diseases among medical students and to examine its association with their perceived stress levels.
A cross-sectional study was conducted among 80 medical students at Al-Iraqia University during the 2024–2025 academic year. Participants completed a self-administered online questionnaire that included demographic data, a 10-item autoimmune disease knowledge test, and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10). Knowledge scores were compared across stress categories (low, moderate, high) using one-way ANOVA.
Among 79 valid responses, 16.2% reported low stress, 55.0% moderate, and 28.7% high stress. No significant difference was found in knowledge scores between stress groups (p > 0.05). However, a statistically significant difference was observed between academic stages: third-year students scored higher on autoimmune knowledge than fourth-year students (p = 0.0047).
While perceived stress levels were not significantly associated with autoimmune disease knowledge, academic stage appeared to play a notable role in knowledge retention. These findings highlight the importance of reinforcing basic immunological education throughout medical training and addressing stress as a component of academic support.

Fibronectin (FN) is a major component of the extracellular matrix and is known to participate in essential biological activities such as wound healing, cell adhesion, and vascular remodeling. Several studies have suggested that FN might be involved in the metabolic disturbances and vascular complication commonly seen in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).
The purpose of this research was to investigate FN concentrations in Iraqi T2DM patients, examine their links to insulin resistance, and oxidative stress.
We conducted a study at Baghdad Medical City Hospital between January and June 2025. A total of 150 participants were enrolled and divided equally into three groups: patients with T2DM and complications, patients with T2DM but without complications, and healthy controls. For all participants, plasma FN, HOMA‑IR, malondialdehyde (MDA), C‑reactive protein (CRP), HbA1c, fasting glucose, and total cholesterol were assessed using validated ELISA kits together with routine biochemical techniques.
Our findings revealed that FN concentrations were substantially higher in patients with T2DM who had complications (662.6 ± 6.1 mg/dL) compared with those without complications (533.4 ± 6.2 mg/dL) and the control group (311.5 ± 6.2 mg/dL) (p < 0.001). Moreover, FN showed strong positive correlations with HOMA‑IR (r = 0.84), CRP (r = 0.88), and MDA (r = 0.85), all of which were statistically significant (p < 0.01).
These observations highlight that FN is closely related to insulin resistance, oxidative stress, and inflammatory status in patients with T2DM. Its strong association with diabetic complications supports its potential value as a complementary biomarker to HbA1c. Our study adds new data from a Middle Eastern population, where few studies have examined FN in diabetes.

This study investigates the incidence of primary infections and reactivations of the HHV-6 virus in pediatric leukemia patients, and their possible role in the disease course or in contributing to immunosuppression. Human Herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) Primary Infections and Reactivation in Children with Leukemia: A Clinical and Epidemiological Study” illustrates the gaps and problems in the research of HHV-6 viruses in children with leukemia which was the case in the United States and shows the defects in the use of clinics and hospital laboratories and the possible contribution of the systematic research of the pediatric oncology clinic in children suffering from leukemia aiming pediatric population of the country was the first step in Canadian leukemia and HHV-6 viruses in children. The present case-control study analyzed a total of blood samples. The case group comprised of children aged 1-13 years who were diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) or acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with a sample size of 50. The control group had 50 children who were matched by age and sex with the case group and were healthy without any personal or familial history of hematological malignancies or viral illness. The collected samples were centrifuged and the sera were stored at 4 degrees Celsius till the analysis. hhv-6 specific IgG antibodies were assessed by the EL1SA technique. The mean serum level of HHV-6-specific IgG antibodies was significantly higher in the leukemia group (77.67 ± 21.79) compared to the control group (14.89 ± 2.93), and this difference was statistically significant (p < 0.001). Our findings indicate a higher prevalence of HHV-6 infection among pediatric leukemia patients. This may reflect viral reactivation due to immunosuppression rather than a direct oncogenic role for the virus.

Leiomyomas, commonly known as fibroids, are the most prevalent benign gynecological tumors among premenopausal women, with significant implications for women\'s health and healthcare costs. The study aimed to investigate the effect of parity on the development of uterine fibroids in women attending Al- Habibia General Hospital, Baghdad Medical City and multiple private clinics in Baghdad.
A cross-sectional observational study was conducted from May to July 2024, involving 103 women aged 20 and older.
Data were collected through structured interviews and medical record reviews, focusing on demographic and reproductive health characteristics, including parity and the presence of uterine fibroids, confirmed via ultrasound.
Among the participants, 53.4% had 2 to 4 children, yet the association between parity and history of myomas was not statistically significant (p ≤ 0.078). A significant correlation was found between pregnancy status and history of myomas (p ≤ 0.012), with 89.1% of nonpregnant participants reporting a history of fibroids. No significant association was identified between the number of abortions and myomas (p ≤ 0.214).
This study suggests that higher parity may not protect against the development of fibroids in this population. Additionally, pregnancy status appears to significantly influence the presence of myomas, aligning with existing literature that links fibroids to reduced fertility and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Further research is needed to explore the underlying mechanisms and broader implications of these findings.