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Background: Lower extremity amputations (LEAs) significantly contribute to mortality and morbidity, often resulting from peripheral artery disease and diabetes mellitus (DM). Traumatic injuries also account for many LEAs. Despite the global burden, the epidemiology of LEAs, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, remains underexplored. This study utilizes the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) dataset to analyze temporal trends in LEAs in the MENA region from 1990 to 2019. Methods: The study utilized the 2019 GBD dataset, which includes estimates for incidence, prevalence, and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) across 369 diseases. Age-standardized incidence rates (ASIRs) for LEAs were extracted for 21 MENA countries. Trends were analyzed using percentage change calculations and Joinpoint regression to identify significant shifts in LEA rates over time. Results: From 1990 to 2019, male LEA rates generally decreased, while female rates increased. Significant increases in LEA rates were observed in Syria, Yemen, and Afghanistan, correlating with periods of conflict and instability. Conversely, countries like Iraq, Palestine, Sudan, Lebanon, Iran, and Kuwait saw marked decreases. The study highlighted a complex interplay of socio-political factors, natural disasters, and chronic diseases like DM in shaping LEA trends across the region. Conclusion: The study reveals variable LEA trends in the MENA region, influenced by conflicts, natural disasters, and chronic diseases. These findings underscore the need for targeted public health interventions, improved healthcare access, and robust data collection systems to reduce the burden of LEAs and improve patient outcomes in the MENA region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aims to determine the concentration of radon to assess the radioactive risk in groundwater in Bardarash, Kurdistan region, Iraq, which relies on groundwater as its primary source of water. Fifty samples were collected from wells for water use and were evaluated with RAD7-active Durridge Electronic Detector. Radon concentrations ranged from 0.93±0.43 Bq/l to 11.39±1.86 Bq/l, with a mean of 7.22 Bq/l and a standard deviation of 2.5. The results were used to estimate the annual effective doses of three categories. The annual effective doses of ingestion of groundwater ranged from 14.26 to 174.61 µSv/y with an average value of 110.73 µSv/y, 19.02 to 232.81 pSv/y with an average value of 147.67 µSv/y, and 4.41 to 54.05 µSv/y with an average value of 34.27 µSv/y, for infants, children, and adults, respectively. Furthermore, the annual effective dosage obtained in inhalation ranged from 2.34 to 28.70 µSv/y, with an average of 18.20 µSv/y. The total annual effective dose ranged from 16.60 to 203.31 µSv/y with an average value of 128.93 µSv/y, 21.35 to 261.51 µSv/y with an average value of 165.84 µSv/y, and 6.76 to 82.75 µSv/y with an average value of 52.48 µSv/y for infants, children, and adults, respectively. The majority of the samples had radon concentrations and effective dosages that were less than the maximum permissible limit of 11.1 Bq/l. This indicates that the majority of the samples are drinkable and safe to consume. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Diyala Journal of Medicine is the property of Republic of Iraq Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research (MOHESR) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Electric vehicles are becoming prominent nowadays and playing an important role in the transportation sector as conventional vehicles affect the environment. The rising number of vehicles requires increasing the charging stations, which affects the distribution network if placed randomly. Therefore, selecting the optimal place for these charging stations is very important to mitigate the effect on the distribution system. This paper presents a decision-making method to select the location of the charging station in a radial distribution system optimally. The fixed point algorithm was used for the analysis of load flow. The analysis was carried outand tested on the 33 bus IEEE and a real case study in Iraq was used for the study. The result of the charging station placement is compared with other research and showed its efficiency in work. The analysis showed the effectiveness of the proposed method in reducing the effect of charging stations on voltages and losses under different conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Young women with breast cancer have been reported to present more aggressive clinical and pathological features, requiring more treatment options compared with older patients. Our objective was to investigate the clinicopathological features of breast cancer in our local young women. Method: We conducted an observational descriptive study on 100 young women (age ≤ 40) with breast cancer. The subjects were taken care of, at a single tertiary cancer facility, from mid-2007 to mid-2014. We reviewed the clinicopathological profiles and therapeutic strategies. Results: Ratio of breast cancer in young women was about 13% of all breast cancer patients. The mean age of the patients was 35 years ± 4SD. 56% of the patients had grade III tumors and 46% were in stage III. Hormonal receptors were positive in 70%, while HER2 was positive in 26%. 70% of the patients underwent modified radical mastectomy, 96% received chemotherapy, and 70% received radiotherapy and required hormonal therapy. Conclusion: This review showed that breast cancer in our local young women was largely diagnosed at advanced stages with more aggressive clinico-pathological features. Moreover, most of the patients received more aggressive treatment options. Therefore, physicians should pay a close attention to breast lumps in young women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim : To explore stakeholders’ perspectives on the quality of death registration and possibility of introducing verbal autopsy into the Kurdistan Region, Iraq. Methods: Qualitative interviews conducted with 15 stakeholders from the Ministry of Health, Directorates of Health, and Medico-legal Institutes of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, and Duhok of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Stakeholders were selected through the purposeful sampling method. Responses were analyzed using qualitative content analysis and thematic analysis. Responses were categorized into three main categories: strengths, gaps, and suggestions for improving the death registration in the Kurdistan Region. Results: The strong points in favor of the current death registration were: easy and good practice, it was easy for people to get a certificate, the existence of laws and regulations related to death registration, having a “standard death certificate,” and follow-up and monitoring of the process of death registration at the Medicolegal Institutes. The gaps were incompleteness and inaccuracy in most of the locations, staff ignorance, no checking of data, missing cases, no use of the data, and no standardized process for compiling data. The stakeholders emphasized on implementing the existing rules and regulations, building staff capacity, systematic processes for data management, and follow-up and monitoring as strategies for improvement. All the stakeholders reported that verbal autopsy is appropriate for solving problems related to cause-ofdeath data. However, the feasibility of verbal autopsy will be a challenge for several reasons, including the current economic crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Al-Mustansiriyah Journal for Pharmaceutical Sciences is the property of Republic of Iraq Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research (MOHESR) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Domestic violence (DV) and other experienced trauma types increase the risk for impaired functioning. Access to social resources may provide a buffer to existing risks and allow individuals to continue and build functioning. This cross-sectional study investigated the direct effects of DV and access to social resources (perceived social support, social integration, and frequency of social contact), as well as their potential interactive effects, on daily functioning among 894 male and female trauma survivors who attended primary care clinics in Kurdistan, Iraq in 2009 and 2010. Experiencing DV was not associated with functioning for males (p=.15) or females (p=.60), suggesting that in the context of a trauma-affected sample, the experience of DV may not significantly increase the risk for functional impairment. Greater amounts of social integration were associated with less functional impairment among males (p<.01) and females (p<.05); social integration was associated with less functional impairment among males only (p<.01); and frequency of social contact was associated with less functional impairment among females only (p<.05), indicating that the association between social resource type and functioning differed by gender. Social resources had a stronger effect on functioning among men compared to women. Among males who experienced DV, social integration was the only social resource associated with less functional impairment (p<.01); among male trauma survivors who did not experience DV, social support was the only resource associated with less functional impairment (p<.01). Further investigation into these associations is warranted to inform intervention strategies for survivors of DV and other traumas in post-conflict settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Qadisiyah Computer Science & Mathematics is the property of Republic of Iraq Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research (MOHESR) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Ophiolitic rocks (chromitites and serpentinized peridotites) were petrologically examined in detail for the first time from Rayat, in the Iraqi part of the Zagros thrust zone, an ophiolitic belt. Almost all the primary silicates have been altered out, but chromian spinel has survived from alteration and gives information about the primary petrological characteristics. The protolith of the serpentinite was clinopyroxene-free harzburgite with chromian spinel of intermediate Cr# (= Cr/[Cr + Al] atomic ratio) of 0.5 to 0.6. The harzburgite with that signature is the most common in the mantle section of the Tethyan ophiolites such as the Oman ophiolite, and is the most suitable host for chromitite genesis. Except for one sample, which has Cr# = 0.6 for spinel, the Cr# of spinel is high, around 0.7, in chromitite. The variation in Cr# of spinel in chromitite observed here has been also reported in the Oman ophiolite. The peridotite with chromitite pods exposed at Rayat was derived from an ophiolite similar in petrological character to the Oman ophiolite, one of the typical Tethyan ophiolites (fragments of Tethyan oceanic lithosphere). This result is consistent with the previous interpretation based on geological analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Existing industrial isomerization processes are compared with the new process (AJAM). • Process performance is evaluated in terms of RON, yield and cost. • The AJAM process gives the highest RON and yield, and the lowest cost among all existing processes. • 25% Energy saving opportunity in AJAM process using Hex network. Increasing the yield and research octane number (RON) of naphtha isomerization process are the most important issues in industries. There are many alternative industrial naphtha isomerization processes practiced around the world. In addition, AJAM is a new naphtha isomerization process proposed by the authors recently (Ahmed et al., 2018) where the isomerization reactor model was validated using real data of Baiji North Refinery (BNR) of Iraq. In this work, first, the performance of the AJAM Process is evaluated against 8 existing industrial isomerization processes in terms of RON, yield and the cost using model based optimisation techniques. To be consistent, we have used the same isomerization reactor model in all the industrial processes we evaluated here. Secondly, energy saving opportunity in the new AJAM process is studied using pinch technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Qalander ophiolite is a small, poorly preserved and incomplete mélange-type complex situated within the Eocene-Oligocene Walash-Naopurdan Group in the Iraqi Zagros Suture Zone (IZSZ). It is one of six fragmented ophiolite complexes emplaced in the IZSZ during the Cretaceous and Tertiary. Within the Qalander ophiolite, serpentinized dunite and harzburgite hosts small lens-shaped podiform high-Al (North Qalander) and high-Cr (North Shitna) chromitite bodies. The average range of Cr-, Mg-, and Fe³-numbers for North Qalander chromitites is 39-53, 75-77, and 3-5, respectively; meanwhile those for North Shitna chromitites are 78-80, 65-73, and 6-8, respectively. The ranges of Al2O3 wt.% and FeO/MgO for the North Qalander and North Shitna chromitites are 15-15.5 and 0.8-1.0, and 9.0-10.5 and 0.4-1.0, respectively. In addition to pyroxene and olivine, inclusions of laurite, millerite and galena were detected within the chromitites of Qalander ophiolite. The matrix minerals between chromite grains are serpentinized olivine and pyroxene, chlorite, and calcite; grains of magnetite, pyrite and ilmenite are also common accessories. The concentrations of platinum-group elements (PGE) in both varieties are typical for the ophiolitic chromitites, but they show two distinct patterns of PGE enrichment. The high-Cr chromitites have relatively uniform mantle-normalized PGE distribution patterns with a steep slope, positive Ru and negative Pt anomalies, and they show enrichment of PGE and depletion in Pt relative to the average upper mantle. The high-Al chromitites show relatively gently sloping patterns with slight positive Ru and negative Pt anomalies, high iridium-group PGE (IPGE) abundances relative to the high platinum-group PGE (PPGE), and are distinctly enriched in Pt and Pd relative to the upper mantle and the average abundances in the high-Cr chromitites. The differences in the PGE content, geochemistry, rare earth element (REE), mineral chemistry and petrographical characteristics of the chromitites suggests two stages of magmatic activity which were responsible for the chromitite genesis in the region. The first stage involved low degree partial melting of S-saturated peridotite melt that produced high-Al chromitites of MORB affinity, which crystallized in the upper mantle close to the Moho. The second stage involved a high degree partial melting of S-undersaturated boninitic melt that produced high-Cr chromitites of arc affinity and crystallized in a deeper mantle section. The presence of low-Cr MORB-type chromitites with high-Cr boninitic-type chromitites in the same mantle section suggests their formation in aback-arc supra-subduction zone tectonic setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Supportive counseling type interventions are frequently provided to meet the mental health needs of populations in emergency and post-conflicts contexts, but it has seldom been rigorously evaluated. Existing evaluations from low- and middle-income countries provide mixed evidence of effectiveness. While Iraqi Kurdistan experienced relative stability following the fall of Saddam Hussein's government, the population in the northern Dohuk region has continued to experience periodic violence due to conflicts with neighboring Turkey as well as more recent ISIS-associated violence. We evaluated the impact of a trauma-informed support, skills, and psychoeducation intervention provided by community mental health workers (CMHWs) on depressive symptoms and dysfunction (primary outcomes) as well as post-traumatic stress, traumatic grief, and anxiety symptoms (secondary outcomes). Between June 2009 and June 2010, 295 adults were screened; 209 (71%) met eligibility criteria (trauma exposure and a symptom severity score indicating significant distress and functional impairment, among others) and consented to participate. Of these, 159 were randomized to supportive counseling while 50 were randomized to a waitlist control condition. Comparing average symptom severity scores post-treatment among those in the intervention group with those in the waitlist control group, the supportive counseling program had statistically and clinically significant impacts on the primary outcomes of depression (Cohen's d, 0.57; P = .02) and dysfunction (Cohen's d, 0.53; P = .03) and significant but smaller impacts on anxiety. Although studies by the same research team of psychotherapeutic interventions in other parts of Kurdistan and in southern Iraq found larger effects, this study adds to the global research literature on mental health and psychosocial support and shows that a well-trained and supervised program of trauma-informed support, skills, and psychoeducation that emphasizes the therapeutic relationship can also be effective., (© Bass et al.)

Background: From 1986-9, the Kurdish population of Iraqi Kurdistan was subjected to an intense campaign of military action, and genocide by the central Iraq government. This campaign, referred to as the Anfal, included systematic attacks consisting of aerial bombings, mass deportation, imprisonment, torture, and chemical warfare. It has been estimated that around 200,000 Kurdish people disappeared., Purpose: To gain a better understanding of current priority mental health and psychosocial problems among Kurdish survivors of the Anfal, and to inform the subsequent design of culturally appropriate and relevant assessment instruments and services to address these problems. The study examined 1) the nature and cause of current problems of survivors of torture and/or civilian attacks and their families, 2) what survivors do to address these problems, and 3) what they felt should be done., Methods: We used a grounded theory approach. Free list interviews with a convenience sample (n=42) explored the current problems of Kurdish persons affected by torture. Subsequent key informant interviews (n=21) gathered more detailed information on the priority mental health problem areas identified in the free list interviews., Results: Major mental health problem areas emerging from the free list interviews (and explored in the key informant interviews) included 1) problems directly related to the torture, 2) problems related to the current situation, and 3) problems related to the perception and treatment by others in the community. Problems were similar, but not identical, to Western concepts of depression, anxiety, PTSD and related trauma, and traumatic grief., Conclusion: Iraqi Kurdish torture survivors in Iraq have many mental health and psychosocial problems found among torture survivors elsewhere. The findings suggest that the problems are a result of the trauma experienced as well as current stressors. Development of mental health assessment tools and interventions should therefore address both previous trauma and current stressors.