Ahmed Salih - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Ahmed Salih

Research paper thumbnail of Effects of silymarin, N-acetylcysteine and selenium in the treatment of papulopustular acne

Oxidants and Antioxidants in Medical Science, 2012

There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress is involved in the pat... more There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress is involved in the pathophysiology of acne. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of silymarin, N-acetylcysteine (NAC) and selenium in the treatment of acne vulgaris. A randomized prospective clinical trial was carried out on 56 patients of both sexes with age range of 14-35 years who attend to outpatient clinic in Al-Hussein Teaching Hospital, Karbalaa, Iraq over a period from December 2011 to May 2012, all patients examined clinically by dermatologist and classified according to disease severity. Serum levels of glutathione (GSH), malondialdehyde (MDA) and interleukine-8 (IL-8) in the acne patients were measured by using ready-for-use Elisa kits, and compared to that of 28 healthy volunteers. The clinical follow up was done every two weeks in order to assess the changes in the number of inflammatory lesions. Administration of antioxidants silymarin, NAC and selenium (but not placebo) to patients with acne vulgaris significantly reduced serum MDA and increased serum GSH levels after 8 weeks compared to pre-treatment value; also significantly reduced serum IL-8 levels and the number of inflammatory lesions in patients with acne compared to placebo. The results obtained in this study clearly showed the beneficial effect of using silymarin, NAC and selenium to patients with acne vulgaris as indicated by the clinical improvement and biochemical findings, and confirmed the role of new strategy in the targeting of pathophysiological changes accompanied with acne by using antioxidant agents.

Research paper thumbnail of Effects of Oral Antioxidants on Lesion Counts Associated with Oxidative Stress and Inflammation in Patients with Papulopustular Acne

Journal of Clinical & Experimental Dermatology Research, 2013

Background: There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress and inflam... more Background: There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress and inflammation are involved in the pathophysiology of acne. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of oral Silymarin, N-acetylcysteine and Selenium in the treatment of acne vulgaris. Methods: A randomized prospective clinical trial was carried out on 56 patients with acne vulgaris who were examined clinically by dermatologist and classified according to disease severity. Serum levels of Glutathione, Malondialdehyde and Interleukine-8 in the acne patients were measured pre-and eight weeks post-treatment with oral antioxidants and compared to that of 28 healthy volunteers. The clinical follow-up was done every two weeks to assess the changes in the number of inflammatory lesions. Results: Administration of antioxidants to patients with acne vulgaris significantly reduce serum Malondialdehyde level; and increased serum level of Glutathione after eight weeks compared to pre-treatment value, also significantly reduce Interleukine-8 serum levels and the number of inflammatory lesions in patients with acne compared to placebo. Conclusion: The results obtained in this study clearly showed the beneficial effect of Silymarin, N-acetylcysteine and Selenium to patients with acne vulgaris as indicated by the clinical improvement that strongly and positively correlated with improvement in biochemical data.

Research paper thumbnail of Oxidative stress in acne vulgaris: an important therapeutic target

Journal of Molecular Pathophysiology, 2013

Objective: There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress is involved... more Objective: There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress is involved in the pathophysiology of acne. The aim of this study is to investigate the existence of oxidative stress and inflammatory marker IL-8 in patients with acne vulgaris, and the role of oxidative stress as a therapeutic target in the treatment of acne vulgaris. Methods: A randomized prospective clinical trial was carried out on 56 patients of both sexes with age range of 14-35 years who attend to outpatient clinic in Al-Hussein Teaching Hospital-Kerbalaa-Iraq over a period from December 2011 to May 2012, all patients examined clinically by dermatologist and classified according to disease severity. Serum levels of glutathione (GSH), malondialdehyde (MDA) and interleukine-8 (IL-8) in the acne patients were measured by using ready-for-use Elisa kits, and compared to that of 28 healthy volunteers. Results: The results of the serum level analysis of MDA for the acne patients (expressed as the mean± standard deviation) was highly significant (P value ≤ 0.001) higher than that of healthy volunteers, while serum level of GSH was highly significant (P value ≤ 0.001) lower in acne patients compared to healthy volunteers; there is a significant difference (P value ≤ 0.05) found in serum levels of IL-8 between the acne patients and the healthy volunteers. Conclusions: The results obtained in this study clearly showed the existence of oxidative stress in patients with acne vulgaris, and that oxidative stress along with inflammation play a critical role in acne pathogenesis; furthermore, oxidative stress in acne patients may represents a potential therapeutic target and interference with antioxidant is a rationale choice.

Research paper thumbnail of Effects of Anethum graveolens leave powder on lipid profile in hyperlipidemic patients

Spatula DD - Peer Reviewed Journal on Complementary Medicine and Drug Discovery, 2012

The appearance of adverse effects result in discontinuation of statins by patients which lead to ... more The appearance of adverse effects result in discontinuation of statins by patients which lead to recurrent hyperlipidemia. This may encourage efforts to look for new and safe hypolipidemic agent, many plants used in folk medicine thought to have hypolipidemic effect. Anethum graveolens (Dill) is an annual herb cultivated in Iraq used both as medicinal agent and as food spice. The present study was designed to determine the effect of Anethum graveolens leave powder on lipid profile in the serum of hyperlipidemic patients, compared with that of standard antihyperlipidemic agent lovastatin. METHODS: A prospective randomized clinical trial was carried out on 30 hyperlipidemic patients who attend to outpatient clinic in Alkindy College of Medicine, Baghdad, Iraq, over the period from January 2012 to June 2012. Patients were allocated into: Group A composed of 15 patients treated with lovastatin tablets 20mg once daily for four weeks period; Group B composed of 15 patients treated with 500 mg Anethum graveolens crude powder capsules, to be taken twice daily for four weeks period; besides 15 healthy subjects serve as control. Blood samples were collected after overnight fasting to check the changes in lipid profile. RESULTS: Administration of Anethum graveolens leave powder results in highly significant reduction of lipid profile in hyperlipidemic patients, besides reduction of atherosclerotic index. Its effect is comparable to that of standard agent lovastatin. CONCLUSION: Results obtained in this study suggesting that Anethum graveolens is an efficient hypolipidemic agent and promising cardioprotectant agent. This study clearly showed the strong scientific clinical basis for hypolipidemic traditional use of Anethum graveolens.

Research paper thumbnail of Role of the antioxidant effect of vitamin e with vitamin C and topical povidone-iodine ointment in the treatment of burns

Annals of burns and fire disasters, Jan 31, 2005

Objective. Burns represent a major health problem worldwide, with high mortality and morbidity an... more Objective. Burns represent a major health problem worldwide, with high mortality and morbidity and economic loss even with small burns. Changes in medical treatment protocols depending on a new mechanism involved in the pathogenicity of burns, i.e. oxidative stress (such as the use of povidone-iodine alone or in combination with vitamin E and vitamin C) may improve the outcome and reduce the economic loss. Patients and methods. Thirty-eight thermally injured patients of different age groups, sex, and occupation with different burn size, admitted to the burn unit in Baquba General Hospital, Iraq, were involved in this clinical trial. The patients were allocated to three groups: group A (8 patients), treated according to hospital policy; group B (17 patients), treated with topical povidone-iodine ointment; and group C (13 patients), treated with topical povidone-iodine ointment with systemic once daily 400 mg vitamin E and 500 mg vitamin C in addition to the classical antibiotic used ...

Research paper thumbnail of Effect of zinc supplement in the prognosis of burn patients in iraq

Annals of burns and fire disasters, Jan 30, 2006

Many studies have reported that zinc plasma levels significantly decrease after a burn, leading t... more Many studies have reported that zinc plasma levels significantly decrease after a burn, leading to zinc deficiency, and that increased free radical generation and decreased natural antioxidant may negatively affect wound healing and burn outcome in general. Targeting of these changes is considered an important strategy in the treatment of burns in an attempt to improve burn outcome in the clinical setting. Zinc was given orally in a nutritional dose (15 mg elemental zinc) as a zinc sulphate capsule to burn patients in order to improve post-burn zinc deficiency and burn outcome. The study was carried out in 58 burn patients of different age groups, sex, and occupation with different burn size. The patients were allocated to two groups: group A patients (43 in number) were treated with topical povidone-iodine ointment for the first four days post-injury followed by topical silver sulphadiazine cream 1% until discharge in addition to other prescribed drugs according to our burn unit po...

Research paper thumbnail of How to decrease the incidence of eschar formation during the use of topical povidone-iodine ointment in the treatment of burns

Annals of burns and fire disasters, Jan 31, 2006

The aim of this study was to prevent eschar formation in thermally injured patients during the us... more The aim of this study was to prevent eschar formation in thermally injured patients during the use of povidoneiodine ointment by modifying therapeutic protocols depending on normal events in healing process. Sixty thermally injured patients of different age groups, sex, and occupation with different burn sizes were involved in the study, allocated to two groups. Group A was made up of 17 patients treated with topical povidone-iodine ointment in addition to other prescribed drugs according to the burn unit regimen, while group B was comprised of 43 patients treated with topical povidone-iodine ointment for the first four days post-injury followed by topical silver sulphadiazine cream until discharge and with other prescribed drugs according to the burn unit regimen. In both groups the following were studied, using standard methods: oxidative stress parameters; thyroid, liver, and renal function test; microbiology; mortality rate; healing time and economic aspects. It was found that t...

Research paper thumbnail of Groundwater Dynamics in Hard Rock Aquifers

Research paper thumbnail of Pre- and post-operative prophylactic use of local povidone- iodine in potentially contaminated surgery

Povidone-iodine is a complex of iodine with povidone. It is an iodophore which slowly liberate in... more Povidone-iodine is a complex of iodine with povidone. It is an iodophore which slowly liberate inorganic iodine in contact with the skin and mucous membranes. Since pre- and post-operative management of surgical patients require massive antibiotic treatment which is considered nowadays a very hard task due to high cost, misuse and non-availability of specific agents. A clinical trial on using 10% povidone-iodine solution locally was carried out on 20 selected patients who are candidates for elective and emergency surgical procedures. Povidone-iodine is used for local application on the surgical wound area instead of both pre-and post-operative antibiotic treatment compared with the use of 1.25 - 2.5% chloroxylenol solution wash associated with full pre- and post-operative antibiotic therapy in another 21 selected patients for comparison. The results showed no differences in healing time between the two groups was found while the percentage of occurrence of post-operative infection i...

Research paper thumbnail of Burns, endothelial dysfunction, and oxidative stress: the role of antioxidants

Annals of burns and fire disasters, Jan 31, 2009

Background. Burns cause a systemic inflammatory response, endothelial dysfunction, and increased ... more Background. Burns cause a systemic inflammatory response, endothelial dysfunction, and increased microvascular permeability which results in oedema being formed; these effects are probably the result of a complex interplay between the direct effects of heat on the microcirculation and the action of chemical mediators, including reactive oxygen species. The use of antioxidants can reduce these changes, which are considered a promised step in burns management. Patients and methods. Forty-eight burn patients of either sex and with varying burns percentages were involved in the study. They were each allocated to one of four groups: A, B, C, and D, each group composed of 12 patients. Groups B, C, and D were treated with antioxidants: allopurinol, melatonin, and N-acetylcysteine respectively, while group A was treated according to normal hospital policy, without antioxidants; 12 healthy subjects (group E) served as a control group for comparison. In each group, serum malondialdehyde and s...

Research paper thumbnail of Effect of antioxidants on the incidence of wound infection in burn patients

Annals of burns and fire disasters, Jan 31, 2010

Background. Thermal injury causes the destruction of the physical skin barrier that normally prot... more Background. Thermal injury causes the destruction of the physical skin barrier that normally protects the body from invasion by micro-organisms and induces an immunocompromised state that predisposes burn patients to infection, sepsis, and multiple organ failure. Reactive oxygen species contribute to burn-mediated immune suppression, and as the use of antioxidants has a positive effect on immune function, this may reduce the incidence of wound infection and related complications in burn patients. Patients and methods. One hundred and eighty burn patients of either sex and different ages, suffering from burns of varying percentage, were involved in the study. They were allocated to six groups: A, B, C, D, E, and F, each of 30 patients. Groups B, C, D, E, and F were treated with antioxidants (vitamins E and C, zinc sulphate, allopurinol, melatonin, and N-acetylcysteine, respectively) while group A was treated without antioxidants, according to our hospital policy. Thirty healthy subje...

Research paper thumbnail of Effects of melatonin and zinc on glycemic control in type 2 diabetic patients poorly controlled with metformin

Saudi medical journal, 2006

This project was designed to evaluate the effects of melatonin and zinc on the glycemic control i... more This project was designed to evaluate the effects of melatonin and zinc on the glycemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients with inadequate response to the oral hypoglycemic agent metformin. A placebo controlled, double-blind clinical trial was performed at the Specialized Center for Endocrinology and Diabetes, Al-Rusafa Directorate of Health, Baghdad, Iraq during the period from February to July 2005, in which 46 type 2 diabetic patients were selected and allocated into 3 groups, these groups were treated with single daily oral doses of both 10 mg melatonin and 50 mg zinc acetate alone; 10 mg melatonin and 50 mg zinc acetate in addition to the regularly used metformin or placebo, given at bed time for 90 days. We measured the fasting plasma glucose (FPG), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1C) and serum C-peptide before starting the treatment (zero time) and after 30 and 90 days of treatment. We also performed post-prandial glucose excursion test (PPGE) for selected patients f...

Research paper thumbnail of Antigiardial effect of <i>Anethum graveolens </i>aqueous extract in children

Journal of Intercultural Ethnopharmacology, 2014

Background: Giardia lamblia is the most common intestinal parasite of humans identified worldwide... more Background: Giardia lamblia is the most common intestinal parasite of humans identified worldwide. In spite of metronidazole (Met) is the most commonly used drug for the treatment of giardiasis in humans, low patient compliance and side-effects, especially in children encourage efforts to look for new and safe agent; many plants used in folk medicine thought to have antigiardial effect, Anethum graveolens (AG) (dill) is an annual herb cultivated in Iraq used both as a medicinal agent and as food spice. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of aqueous extract (AE) of AG leave in the treatment of giardiasis, compared with that of standard drug Met. Patients and Methods: A prospective randomized clinical trial was carried out on 28 pediatric patients of both sexes with age of <1 year ranging from 3 to 11 months, who attend to outpatient private clinic in Baghdad for a period of 6 months from June 2013 to December 2013, Patients participate in this study were allocated into two groups: Group A composed of 14 patients treated with Met 15 mg/kg 3 times a day for 5 days. Group B composed of 14 patients treated with AGAE 1 ml 3 times a day for 5 days. Stool samples were collected at 0 time before administration of treatment, after 5 days and after 14 days from starting the treatments to check the efficacy of treatment. Results: Administration of AGAE results in a significant decrease in incidence of G. lamblia after 5 days of treatment indicating the efficacy of AGAE in the treatment of giardiasis a result that is comparable to that of Met. Conclusion: This study showed that pediatric patients with giardiasis may benefit from 5 days treatment with AGAE administered as 1 ml 3 times daily, the improvement in the symptom with this herbal agent was comparable to the standard pharmacological agent Met; results showed that AG is safe and tolerable over treatment course.

Research paper thumbnail of Adherence to the standard guidelines for prescription of antidiabetic agents in patients with type 2 DM

Prescription of appropriate antihyperglycemic agent depending on the standard guidelines has an i... more Prescription of appropriate antihyperglycemic agent depending on the standard guidelines has an important role in controlling diabetes and improving patient health. The aim of the present prospective study is to follow-up the adherence of prescribers to the standard guidelines for the prescription of anti-diabetic drugs in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. A prospective clinical trial was carried out on 64 individuals (43 patients and 21 healthy volunteers) of both sexes with the age range from 40-70 years. Parameters followed-up were fasting blood glucose (FBG), lipid profile, liver and renal function tests. The values of these parameters (at admission and after 3 months of follow-up) were calculated and compared with that of the control group and with the recommended treatment goals stated by American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE/ ACE). Despite of continued treatment, no improvements were seen regarding followed-up parameters. It has been suggested that the adherence of prescribers to the standard guidelines for prescription of anti-diabetic agents is poor in our center, all patients evaluated have highly uncontrolled hyperglycemia where different anti-hyperglycemic drugs fail to attain glycemic control, and therapeutic strategy followed should be reconsidered.

Research paper thumbnail of Effects of melatonin and zinc on lipid profile and renal function in type 2 diabetic patients poorly controlled with metformin

Journal of Pineal Research, 2006

Research paper thumbnail of Treatment of irritable bowel syndrome using a selected herbal combination of iraqi folk medicines

Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 2013

Mentha longifolia, Cyperus rotundus and Zingiber officinale are widely used in Iraqi traditional ... more Mentha longifolia, Cyperus rotundus and Zingiber officinale are widely used in Iraqi traditional medicine for the treatment of multiple gastrointestinal diseases. The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a combination of three herbal agents that are widely used in folk medicine in Iraq for the treatment of patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). A prospective randomised clinical study was carried out on 40 patients of both sexes between 25 and 60 years of age who had been diagnosed with IBS for 5-10 years. The patients were allocated to one of two groups, each consisting of 20 patients. Group A was treated with mebeverine, and Group B was treated with a capsule containing a combination of the following three herbs prepared as fine powders: Mentha longifolia, Cyperus rotundus and Zingiber officinale. IBS symptoms were assessed before and after 8 weeks of treatment. Treatment of IBS patients with the herbal combination resulted in improvements in all of their IBS symptoms after 8 weeks, as revealed by increase in their individual symptom scores and in their mean total improvement percentages. These results were comparable to those produced by the standard agent mebeverine. Patients with IBS showed significant improvements in their IBS symptoms after 8-weeks of treatment with the herbal combination and did not report any adverse effects during their treatment. These results support the efficacy and safety of the herbal combination for the treatment of IBS.

Research paper thumbnail of Role of antioxidants in the treatment of burn lesions

Research paper thumbnail of Usefulness of Antioxidant Drugs in Bronchial Asthma

Research paper thumbnail of Effects of Anethum graveolens leave powder on lipid profile in hyperlipidemic patients

Spatula DD - Peer Reviewed Journal on Complementary Medicine and Drug Discovery, 2012

AIM: The appearance of adverse effects result in discontinuation of statins by patients which lea... more AIM: The appearance of adverse effects result in discontinuation of statins by patients which lead to recurrent hyperlipidemia. This may encourage efforts to look for new and safe hypolipidemic agent, many plants used in folk medicine thought to have hypolipidemic effect. Anethum graveolens (Dill) is an annual herb cultivated in Iraq used both as medicinal agent and as food spice. The present study was designed to determine the effect of Anethum graveolens leave powder on lipid profile in the serum of hyperlipidemic patients, compared with that of standard antihyperlipidemic agent lovastatin. METHODS: A prospective randomized clinical trial was carried out on 30 hyperlipidemic patients who attend to outpatient clinic in Alkindy College of Medicine, Baghdad, Iraq, over the period from January 2012 to June 2012. Patients were allocated into: Group A composed of 15 patients treated with lovastatin tablets 20mg once daily for four weeks period; Group B composed of 15 patients treated with 500 mg Anethum graveolens crude powder capsules, to be taken twice daily for four weeks period; besides 15 healthy subjects serve as control. Blood samples were collected after overnight fasting to check the changes in lipid profile. RESULTS: Administration of Anethum graveolens leave powder results in highly significant reduction of lipid profile in hyperlipidemic patients, besides reduction of atherosclerotic index. Its effect is comparable to that of standard agent lovastatin. CONCLUSION: Results obtained in this study suggesting that Anethum graveolens is an efficient hypolipidemic agent and promising cardioprotectant agent. This study clearly showed the strong scientific clinical basis for hypolipidemic traditional use of Anethum graveolens.

Research paper thumbnail of Effects of silymarin, N-acetylcysteine and selenium in the treatment of papulopustular acne

Oxidants and Antioxidants in Medical Science, 2012

There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress is involved in the pat... more There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress is involved in the pathophysiology of acne. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of silymarin, N-acetylcysteine (NAC) and selenium in the treatment of acne vulgaris. A randomized prospective clinical trial was carried out on 56 patients of both sexes with age range of 14-35 years who attend to outpatient clinic in Al-Hussein Teaching Hospital, Karbalaa, Iraq over a period from December 2011 to May 2012, all patients examined clinically by dermatologist and classified according to disease severity. Serum levels of glutathione (GSH), malondialdehyde (MDA) and interleukine-8 (IL-8) in the acne patients were measured by using ready-for-use Elisa kits, and compared to that of 28 healthy volunteers. The clinical follow up was done every two weeks in order to assess the changes in the number of inflammatory lesions. Administration of antioxidants silymarin, NAC and selenium (but not placebo) to patients with acne vulgaris significantly reduced serum MDA and increased serum GSH levels after 8 weeks compared to pre-treatment value; also significantly reduced serum IL-8 levels and the number of inflammatory lesions in patients with acne compared to placebo. The results obtained in this study clearly showed the beneficial effect of using silymarin, NAC and selenium to patients with acne vulgaris as indicated by the clinical improvement and biochemical findings, and confirmed the role of new strategy in the targeting of pathophysiological changes accompanied with acne by using antioxidant agents.

Research paper thumbnail of Effects of Oral Antioxidants on Lesion Counts Associated with Oxidative Stress and Inflammation in Patients with Papulopustular Acne

Journal of Clinical & Experimental Dermatology Research, 2013

Background: There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress and inflam... more Background: There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress and inflammation are involved in the pathophysiology of acne. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of oral Silymarin, N-acetylcysteine and Selenium in the treatment of acne vulgaris. Methods: A randomized prospective clinical trial was carried out on 56 patients with acne vulgaris who were examined clinically by dermatologist and classified according to disease severity. Serum levels of Glutathione, Malondialdehyde and Interleukine-8 in the acne patients were measured pre-and eight weeks post-treatment with oral antioxidants and compared to that of 28 healthy volunteers. The clinical follow-up was done every two weeks to assess the changes in the number of inflammatory lesions. Results: Administration of antioxidants to patients with acne vulgaris significantly reduce serum Malondialdehyde level; and increased serum level of Glutathione after eight weeks compared to pre-treatment value, also significantly reduce Interleukine-8 serum levels and the number of inflammatory lesions in patients with acne compared to placebo. Conclusion: The results obtained in this study clearly showed the beneficial effect of Silymarin, N-acetylcysteine and Selenium to patients with acne vulgaris as indicated by the clinical improvement that strongly and positively correlated with improvement in biochemical data.

Research paper thumbnail of Oxidative stress in acne vulgaris: an important therapeutic target

Journal of Molecular Pathophysiology, 2013

Objective: There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress is involved... more Objective: There has been an increasing focus on the extent to which oxidative stress is involved in the pathophysiology of acne. The aim of this study is to investigate the existence of oxidative stress and inflammatory marker IL-8 in patients with acne vulgaris, and the role of oxidative stress as a therapeutic target in the treatment of acne vulgaris. Methods: A randomized prospective clinical trial was carried out on 56 patients of both sexes with age range of 14-35 years who attend to outpatient clinic in Al-Hussein Teaching Hospital-Kerbalaa-Iraq over a period from December 2011 to May 2012, all patients examined clinically by dermatologist and classified according to disease severity. Serum levels of glutathione (GSH), malondialdehyde (MDA) and interleukine-8 (IL-8) in the acne patients were measured by using ready-for-use Elisa kits, and compared to that of 28 healthy volunteers. Results: The results of the serum level analysis of MDA for the acne patients (expressed as the mean± standard deviation) was highly significant (P value ≤ 0.001) higher than that of healthy volunteers, while serum level of GSH was highly significant (P value ≤ 0.001) lower in acne patients compared to healthy volunteers; there is a significant difference (P value ≤ 0.05) found in serum levels of IL-8 between the acne patients and the healthy volunteers. Conclusions: The results obtained in this study clearly showed the existence of oxidative stress in patients with acne vulgaris, and that oxidative stress along with inflammation play a critical role in acne pathogenesis; furthermore, oxidative stress in acne patients may represents a potential therapeutic target and interference with antioxidant is a rationale choice.

Research paper thumbnail of Effects of Anethum graveolens leave powder on lipid profile in hyperlipidemic patients

Spatula DD - Peer Reviewed Journal on Complementary Medicine and Drug Discovery, 2012

The appearance of adverse effects result in discontinuation of statins by patients which lead to ... more The appearance of adverse effects result in discontinuation of statins by patients which lead to recurrent hyperlipidemia. This may encourage efforts to look for new and safe hypolipidemic agent, many plants used in folk medicine thought to have hypolipidemic effect. Anethum graveolens (Dill) is an annual herb cultivated in Iraq used both as medicinal agent and as food spice. The present study was designed to determine the effect of Anethum graveolens leave powder on lipid profile in the serum of hyperlipidemic patients, compared with that of standard antihyperlipidemic agent lovastatin. METHODS: A prospective randomized clinical trial was carried out on 30 hyperlipidemic patients who attend to outpatient clinic in Alkindy College of Medicine, Baghdad, Iraq, over the period from January 2012 to June 2012. Patients were allocated into: Group A composed of 15 patients treated with lovastatin tablets 20mg once daily for four weeks period; Group B composed of 15 patients treated with 500 mg Anethum graveolens crude powder capsules, to be taken twice daily for four weeks period; besides 15 healthy subjects serve as control. Blood samples were collected after overnight fasting to check the changes in lipid profile. RESULTS: Administration of Anethum graveolens leave powder results in highly significant reduction of lipid profile in hyperlipidemic patients, besides reduction of atherosclerotic index. Its effect is comparable to that of standard agent lovastatin. CONCLUSION: Results obtained in this study suggesting that Anethum graveolens is an efficient hypolipidemic agent and promising cardioprotectant agent. This study clearly showed the strong scientific clinical basis for hypolipidemic traditional use of Anethum graveolens.

Research paper thumbnail of Role of the antioxidant effect of vitamin e with vitamin C and topical povidone-iodine ointment in the treatment of burns

Annals of burns and fire disasters, Jan 31, 2005

Objective. Burns represent a major health problem worldwide, with high mortality and morbidity an... more Objective. Burns represent a major health problem worldwide, with high mortality and morbidity and economic loss even with small burns. Changes in medical treatment protocols depending on a new mechanism involved in the pathogenicity of burns, i.e. oxidative stress (such as the use of povidone-iodine alone or in combination with vitamin E and vitamin C) may improve the outcome and reduce the economic loss. Patients and methods. Thirty-eight thermally injured patients of different age groups, sex, and occupation with different burn size, admitted to the burn unit in Baquba General Hospital, Iraq, were involved in this clinical trial. The patients were allocated to three groups: group A (8 patients), treated according to hospital policy; group B (17 patients), treated with topical povidone-iodine ointment; and group C (13 patients), treated with topical povidone-iodine ointment with systemic once daily 400 mg vitamin E and 500 mg vitamin C in addition to the classical antibiotic used ...

Research paper thumbnail of Effect of zinc supplement in the prognosis of burn patients in iraq

Annals of burns and fire disasters, Jan 30, 2006

Many studies have reported that zinc plasma levels significantly decrease after a burn, leading t... more Many studies have reported that zinc plasma levels significantly decrease after a burn, leading to zinc deficiency, and that increased free radical generation and decreased natural antioxidant may negatively affect wound healing and burn outcome in general. Targeting of these changes is considered an important strategy in the treatment of burns in an attempt to improve burn outcome in the clinical setting. Zinc was given orally in a nutritional dose (15 mg elemental zinc) as a zinc sulphate capsule to burn patients in order to improve post-burn zinc deficiency and burn outcome. The study was carried out in 58 burn patients of different age groups, sex, and occupation with different burn size. The patients were allocated to two groups: group A patients (43 in number) were treated with topical povidone-iodine ointment for the first four days post-injury followed by topical silver sulphadiazine cream 1% until discharge in addition to other prescribed drugs according to our burn unit po...

Research paper thumbnail of How to decrease the incidence of eschar formation during the use of topical povidone-iodine ointment in the treatment of burns

Annals of burns and fire disasters, Jan 31, 2006

The aim of this study was to prevent eschar formation in thermally injured patients during the us... more The aim of this study was to prevent eschar formation in thermally injured patients during the use of povidoneiodine ointment by modifying therapeutic protocols depending on normal events in healing process. Sixty thermally injured patients of different age groups, sex, and occupation with different burn sizes were involved in the study, allocated to two groups. Group A was made up of 17 patients treated with topical povidone-iodine ointment in addition to other prescribed drugs according to the burn unit regimen, while group B was comprised of 43 patients treated with topical povidone-iodine ointment for the first four days post-injury followed by topical silver sulphadiazine cream until discharge and with other prescribed drugs according to the burn unit regimen. In both groups the following were studied, using standard methods: oxidative stress parameters; thyroid, liver, and renal function test; microbiology; mortality rate; healing time and economic aspects. It was found that t...

Research paper thumbnail of Groundwater Dynamics in Hard Rock Aquifers

Research paper thumbnail of Pre- and post-operative prophylactic use of local povidone- iodine in potentially contaminated surgery

Povidone-iodine is a complex of iodine with povidone. It is an iodophore which slowly liberate in... more Povidone-iodine is a complex of iodine with povidone. It is an iodophore which slowly liberate inorganic iodine in contact with the skin and mucous membranes. Since pre- and post-operative management of surgical patients require massive antibiotic treatment which is considered nowadays a very hard task due to high cost, misuse and non-availability of specific agents. A clinical trial on using 10% povidone-iodine solution locally was carried out on 20 selected patients who are candidates for elective and emergency surgical procedures. Povidone-iodine is used for local application on the surgical wound area instead of both pre-and post-operative antibiotic treatment compared with the use of 1.25 - 2.5% chloroxylenol solution wash associated with full pre- and post-operative antibiotic therapy in another 21 selected patients for comparison. The results showed no differences in healing time between the two groups was found while the percentage of occurrence of post-operative infection i...

Research paper thumbnail of Burns, endothelial dysfunction, and oxidative stress: the role of antioxidants

Annals of burns and fire disasters, Jan 31, 2009

Background. Burns cause a systemic inflammatory response, endothelial dysfunction, and increased ... more Background. Burns cause a systemic inflammatory response, endothelial dysfunction, and increased microvascular permeability which results in oedema being formed; these effects are probably the result of a complex interplay between the direct effects of heat on the microcirculation and the action of chemical mediators, including reactive oxygen species. The use of antioxidants can reduce these changes, which are considered a promised step in burns management. Patients and methods. Forty-eight burn patients of either sex and with varying burns percentages were involved in the study. They were each allocated to one of four groups: A, B, C, and D, each group composed of 12 patients. Groups B, C, and D were treated with antioxidants: allopurinol, melatonin, and N-acetylcysteine respectively, while group A was treated according to normal hospital policy, without antioxidants; 12 healthy subjects (group E) served as a control group for comparison. In each group, serum malondialdehyde and s...

Research paper thumbnail of Effect of antioxidants on the incidence of wound infection in burn patients

Annals of burns and fire disasters, Jan 31, 2010

Background. Thermal injury causes the destruction of the physical skin barrier that normally prot... more Background. Thermal injury causes the destruction of the physical skin barrier that normally protects the body from invasion by micro-organisms and induces an immunocompromised state that predisposes burn patients to infection, sepsis, and multiple organ failure. Reactive oxygen species contribute to burn-mediated immune suppression, and as the use of antioxidants has a positive effect on immune function, this may reduce the incidence of wound infection and related complications in burn patients. Patients and methods. One hundred and eighty burn patients of either sex and different ages, suffering from burns of varying percentage, were involved in the study. They were allocated to six groups: A, B, C, D, E, and F, each of 30 patients. Groups B, C, D, E, and F were treated with antioxidants (vitamins E and C, zinc sulphate, allopurinol, melatonin, and N-acetylcysteine, respectively) while group A was treated without antioxidants, according to our hospital policy. Thirty healthy subje...

Research paper thumbnail of Effects of melatonin and zinc on glycemic control in type 2 diabetic patients poorly controlled with metformin

Saudi medical journal, 2006

This project was designed to evaluate the effects of melatonin and zinc on the glycemic control i... more This project was designed to evaluate the effects of melatonin and zinc on the glycemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients with inadequate response to the oral hypoglycemic agent metformin. A placebo controlled, double-blind clinical trial was performed at the Specialized Center for Endocrinology and Diabetes, Al-Rusafa Directorate of Health, Baghdad, Iraq during the period from February to July 2005, in which 46 type 2 diabetic patients were selected and allocated into 3 groups, these groups were treated with single daily oral doses of both 10 mg melatonin and 50 mg zinc acetate alone; 10 mg melatonin and 50 mg zinc acetate in addition to the regularly used metformin or placebo, given at bed time for 90 days. We measured the fasting plasma glucose (FPG), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1C) and serum C-peptide before starting the treatment (zero time) and after 30 and 90 days of treatment. We also performed post-prandial glucose excursion test (PPGE) for selected patients f...

Research paper thumbnail of Antigiardial effect of <i>Anethum graveolens </i>aqueous extract in children

Journal of Intercultural Ethnopharmacology, 2014

Background: Giardia lamblia is the most common intestinal parasite of humans identified worldwide... more Background: Giardia lamblia is the most common intestinal parasite of humans identified worldwide. In spite of metronidazole (Met) is the most commonly used drug for the treatment of giardiasis in humans, low patient compliance and side-effects, especially in children encourage efforts to look for new and safe agent; many plants used in folk medicine thought to have antigiardial effect, Anethum graveolens (AG) (dill) is an annual herb cultivated in Iraq used both as a medicinal agent and as food spice. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of aqueous extract (AE) of AG leave in the treatment of giardiasis, compared with that of standard drug Met. Patients and Methods: A prospective randomized clinical trial was carried out on 28 pediatric patients of both sexes with age of <1 year ranging from 3 to 11 months, who attend to outpatient private clinic in Baghdad for a period of 6 months from June 2013 to December 2013, Patients participate in this study were allocated into two groups: Group A composed of 14 patients treated with Met 15 mg/kg 3 times a day for 5 days. Group B composed of 14 patients treated with AGAE 1 ml 3 times a day for 5 days. Stool samples were collected at 0 time before administration of treatment, after 5 days and after 14 days from starting the treatments to check the efficacy of treatment. Results: Administration of AGAE results in a significant decrease in incidence of G. lamblia after 5 days of treatment indicating the efficacy of AGAE in the treatment of giardiasis a result that is comparable to that of Met. Conclusion: This study showed that pediatric patients with giardiasis may benefit from 5 days treatment with AGAE administered as 1 ml 3 times daily, the improvement in the symptom with this herbal agent was comparable to the standard pharmacological agent Met; results showed that AG is safe and tolerable over treatment course.

Research paper thumbnail of Adherence to the standard guidelines for prescription of antidiabetic agents in patients with type 2 DM

Prescription of appropriate antihyperglycemic agent depending on the standard guidelines has an i... more Prescription of appropriate antihyperglycemic agent depending on the standard guidelines has an important role in controlling diabetes and improving patient health. The aim of the present prospective study is to follow-up the adherence of prescribers to the standard guidelines for the prescription of anti-diabetic drugs in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. A prospective clinical trial was carried out on 64 individuals (43 patients and 21 healthy volunteers) of both sexes with the age range from 40-70 years. Parameters followed-up were fasting blood glucose (FBG), lipid profile, liver and renal function tests. The values of these parameters (at admission and after 3 months of follow-up) were calculated and compared with that of the control group and with the recommended treatment goals stated by American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE/ ACE). Despite of continued treatment, no improvements were seen regarding followed-up parameters. It has been suggested that the adherence of prescribers to the standard guidelines for prescription of anti-diabetic agents is poor in our center, all patients evaluated have highly uncontrolled hyperglycemia where different anti-hyperglycemic drugs fail to attain glycemic control, and therapeutic strategy followed should be reconsidered.

Research paper thumbnail of Effects of melatonin and zinc on lipid profile and renal function in type 2 diabetic patients poorly controlled with metformin

Journal of Pineal Research, 2006

Research paper thumbnail of Treatment of irritable bowel syndrome using a selected herbal combination of iraqi folk medicines

Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 2013

Mentha longifolia, Cyperus rotundus and Zingiber officinale are widely used in Iraqi traditional ... more Mentha longifolia, Cyperus rotundus and Zingiber officinale are widely used in Iraqi traditional medicine for the treatment of multiple gastrointestinal diseases. The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a combination of three herbal agents that are widely used in folk medicine in Iraq for the treatment of patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). A prospective randomised clinical study was carried out on 40 patients of both sexes between 25 and 60 years of age who had been diagnosed with IBS for 5-10 years. The patients were allocated to one of two groups, each consisting of 20 patients. Group A was treated with mebeverine, and Group B was treated with a capsule containing a combination of the following three herbs prepared as fine powders: Mentha longifolia, Cyperus rotundus and Zingiber officinale. IBS symptoms were assessed before and after 8 weeks of treatment. Treatment of IBS patients with the herbal combination resulted in improvements in all of their IBS symptoms after 8 weeks, as revealed by increase in their individual symptom scores and in their mean total improvement percentages. These results were comparable to those produced by the standard agent mebeverine. Patients with IBS showed significant improvements in their IBS symptoms after 8-weeks of treatment with the herbal combination and did not report any adverse effects during their treatment. These results support the efficacy and safety of the herbal combination for the treatment of IBS.

Research paper thumbnail of Role of antioxidants in the treatment of burn lesions

Research paper thumbnail of Usefulness of Antioxidant Drugs in Bronchial Asthma

Research paper thumbnail of Effects of Anethum graveolens leave powder on lipid profile in hyperlipidemic patients

Spatula DD - Peer Reviewed Journal on Complementary Medicine and Drug Discovery, 2012

AIM: The appearance of adverse effects result in discontinuation of statins by patients which lea... more AIM: The appearance of adverse effects result in discontinuation of statins by patients which lead to recurrent hyperlipidemia. This may encourage efforts to look for new and safe hypolipidemic agent, many plants used in folk medicine thought to have hypolipidemic effect. Anethum graveolens (Dill) is an annual herb cultivated in Iraq used both as medicinal agent and as food spice. The present study was designed to determine the effect of Anethum graveolens leave powder on lipid profile in the serum of hyperlipidemic patients, compared with that of standard antihyperlipidemic agent lovastatin. METHODS: A prospective randomized clinical trial was carried out on 30 hyperlipidemic patients who attend to outpatient clinic in Alkindy College of Medicine, Baghdad, Iraq, over the period from January 2012 to June 2012. Patients were allocated into: Group A composed of 15 patients treated with lovastatin tablets 20mg once daily for four weeks period; Group B composed of 15 patients treated with 500 mg Anethum graveolens crude powder capsules, to be taken twice daily for four weeks period; besides 15 healthy subjects serve as control. Blood samples were collected after overnight fasting to check the changes in lipid profile. RESULTS: Administration of Anethum graveolens leave powder results in highly significant reduction of lipid profile in hyperlipidemic patients, besides reduction of atherosclerotic index. Its effect is comparable to that of standard agent lovastatin. CONCLUSION: Results obtained in this study suggesting that Anethum graveolens is an efficient hypolipidemic agent and promising cardioprotectant agent. This study clearly showed the strong scientific clinical basis for hypolipidemic traditional use of Anethum graveolens.