Pulmonary rehabilitation in asthmatic children

Bronchial asthma is characterized by persistent air way inflammation that is associated with increased air way responsiveness, airway limitation and respiratory symptoms as wheezing, coughing and dyspnea. Rehabilitation programs are recommended and widely applied in asthmatic patients, so exercise prescription is a keystone of these programs. The objective of this study was to investigate the efficiency of pulmonary rehabilitation programs in asthmatic children. Twenty eight children, with age ranged from 7 to 10 years were included in this study. They were subdivided into two matching groups: A study group included 16 children [9 females and 7 males] and a control group, which included 12 children [6 females and 6 males]. For both groups, pulmonary function tests, in the form of forced vital capacity [FVC], forced expiratory volume in the first second [FEVI], maximum voluntary ventilation [MVV] and peak expiratory flow rate [PEFR] were done for all patients before and after one month of treatment. For both groups, a corticosteroid therapy and the traditional physical therapy modalities were administered, in the form of localized deep breathing exercises with frequent coughing and postural drainage according to the affected lobe. For the study group, an incentive spirometry was added. The groups did not differ in all parameters before the study [p> 0.05]. A statistically significant decrease was found in symptoms, medication scores and also pulmonary function measures in the experimental group versus the control. It can be concluded that pulmonary programs could improve quality of life and pulmonary functions, so these programs should be placed as a component in management of asthmatic children

On medical education: 2 -Response of a sample of medical students to different models of testing

The final examination in anatomy and pharmacology conducted in May 1994 for medical students in the first three years of the college of medicine in Ramadi were characterized by two main categories of questions. The first was directly related to one topic and limited to one lecture, while the second required reasoning, problem-solving, and putting together several pieces from more than one lecture in the same year or perhaps from previous learning. Statistical analysis of scores was done by using Student's t-test. Results have shown that students did well on questions directly based on one lecture, i.e. memorization type, scoring from 58.0 to 66.6%; but failed in the group of questions that required reasoning and linking between lectures, scores of this type ranged from 35.3 to 43.3%. These results indicate that substantial defects may exist in our educational system. Coordination of courses and interdepartmental planning are recommended in solving part of the problem

Dominance of one cerebral hemisphere in man. A survey study based on handedness and its pattern of inheritance in a sample of Iraqis

A survey was conducted in four high schools in westen Iraq, in which each student was asked to report on the handedness of his parents, his brothers and sisters, and himself. The size of the sample reached 10,000 individuals. The percentage of the right and left hand users in the group as a whole were 93.7% and 6.3% respectively. Comparing male and female right-handedness, the number of females was higher than males by 1.5%. To trace heredity of the trait, the Chi-square test for association and the conditional probabilities were calculated. They proved the following: 1. significant association and interaction exist between the characteristics of parents and those of their children. 2- cerebral dominance for handedness is heritable as reflected by the heredity of the trait, which follows clear interaction patterns

Movement of ear pinna in man. Its frequency, heritability and significance. A survey study in western Iraq

This survey was conducted to determine-the percentage of those who are able to move their auricles, and to establish a concept for the heredity of the trait in western Iraq. The sample size was 10,000 individuals. Results have shown that for every one thousand there were eight persons able to move their auricics [0.8%], and the trait was more frequent in males than females with a ratio of 4 1 Statistically there was a significant association between the children and parents, and the trait appeared to be heritable

Selected factors for nocturnal enuresis

A case control study was conducted on 70 nocturnal enuretic children and 50 controls. Positive family history of nocturnal enuresis [NE], presence of family troubles, history of allergic diseases, early life stressful events and higher orders of birth were found to be risk factors for NE. Toilet training was found to be an important factor to NE, especially when practiced continuously. The studied children were in great need for treatment and the most suitable approach is motivational psychological therapy. Also, dual communication of physician and mother of the at risk child is essential for prevention or early intervention for cure

name of Allah in the hearts of men, women, birds, and animals

This study represents the first attempt ever to examine the heart from a spiritual point of view, and to correlate between the description of the heart in the Quran and Hadith, and that in modern anatomy and histology. Hundreds of hearts from men, women, birds, and animals were examined. Our attention was given to the muscular ridges on the lining surface of each chamber, and whether they follow any particular pattern. Results have shown that ridges on the lining of the left auricle were the most consistant, and very often end by writing the word [Allah] in Arabic. The word was clear in some hearts, and not clear in some others, with marked variation in between. It is too early to speculate on the significance of this observation at present

Cell organelles under conditions of stress: 2. Deposition of glycogen and lipid in hepatocyte nucleus

Livers from streptozotocin [SZ]- induced diabetic animals were examined during the fed and the fasted conditions in order to find out when, where, and how lipid droplets and glycogen particles are deposited within the nuclear areas. Have shown that hepatocyte nuclei of mice subjected to severe insulin-dependent diabetes [propuced by SZ injection] frequently accumulated lipid droplets specially during fasting, without the presence of endoplasmic reticulum [ER] in close proximity. In addition, marked distortion of nuclei was seen in the form of indentations and invaginations that become full of glycogen when the animal is fed. For the first time, however, this study differentiates between two distinct forms of glycogen deposition in the nucleus. One form in which the nucleus is invaginated, and glycogen in the nuclear area is mixed with other cytoplasmic elements, and the other way in which real invasion of the nuclear membrane and the chromatin material by glycogen particles is seen. Again, without the presence of ER in the vicinity. The nuclear distortion, and whether glycogen or lipid deposition in the nuclei require the presence of endoplasmic reticulum are discussed

Cell organelles under conditions of stress: 3. the liver cell membrane along the sinusoidal border and the significance of its close association with lipid droplets

One of the simplest methods to study lipid droplet deposition is to starve the animal for a few days. In this experiment, normal albino mice were starved for three days and their liver cells were examined for the presence of lipid droplets using the fresh frozen sections, the semithin sections of epon-embedded samples, and also by the electron microscope. Have shown that lipid droplets tend to accumulate along the sinusoidal border of hepatocytes, and to a less extent in the rest of cytoplasm. Cell walls bordering bile canaliculi, however, appeared in close association with numerous Golgi complex areas and no lipid droplets around. The significance of lipid droplet accumulation along the sinusoidal border, and role of this part of cell membrane in lipid metabolism are discussed

effects of 7 days starvation and refeeding on livers of normal albino, and genetically diabetic [db/db] mice: a biochemical and morphological study

This study examines the effects of 7 day starvation and refeeding on plasma glucose, hepatic glycogen%, and hepatic ultrastructure in normal and db/db mice At the end of the starvation period, normal animals lost 40% of their total body weight, while the obese db/db mice lost only 10%. Plasma glucose levels were 40 +/- 9 mg% in normal, and 220 +/- 42 mg% in db/db mice. Traces of glycogen were detected in both livers [n: 0.3 +/- 0.01%, db/db: 0.5 +/- 0.04%]. Electron micrographs showed accumulation of lipid droplets, large autophagic vacules, and swollen mitochondria in starved normal liver cells, while starved db/db hepatocytes contained larger and normally looking mitochondria. Four hours after feeding, plasma glucose and hepatic glycogen rose to ad lib levels and stayed thereafter. In micrographs, lipid droplets and lysosomes were replaced by glycogen masses. Diabetic mice, however, always maintained higher plasma glucose, and larger lipid droplets in liver cells before and after feeding. It is concluded from this study that, normal and diabetic mice respond differently to starvation and refeeding. Plasma glucose levels and cell morphology recover earlier in normal mice

Effect of fasting on lysosomes and peroxisomes in periportal and centrilobular hepatocytes: an electron microscopic study with quantitative analysis

This study examines the changes in the numbers of lysosomes and peroxisomes in centrilobular and periportal mouse hepatocytes following a 30-hour fasting period. The two organelles were counted per unit area of cytoplasm in groups of micrographs bearing the same number and magnification from each control fed and fasted liver. Results indicated that lysosomes increase with fasting by 100% in periportal cells [PC] and 140% in centrilobular cells [CC], while peroxisomes increased by 50% in PC and 140% in CC, compared to similar cells from fed animals. It is suggested that the two organelles play a significant role in fasting, that seems to be exagerated in cells around the central vein