The most common congenital defect of the hand is syndactyly. This is caused by incomplete separation of the fingers during limb development. In this article, we discuss the embryological basis, risk variables, and classification methods that guide surgical decision-making. The aim of reconstructive surgery is to produce a functional, aesthetic, and independent web space without any sequelae such as scar contracture or digital necrosis. We discuss indications for intervention, including timing of surgery according to the type of syndactyly and associated disorders. Current surgical techniques involve full-thickness skin grafts, dorsal advancement flaps, and a modified dorsal pentagonal flap.

Background: The roles of chronic inflammation and genomic instability have recently emerged as risk factors in prostate carcinogenesis. In this research, single cell gel electrophoresis (comet assay) parameters such as DNA damage, serum interleukin-17 (IL-17), and immature granulocyte (IG) levels were studied to identify the difference between prostate cancer patients and healthy control groups. Method: DNA damage was determined by alkaline comet assay in peripheral blood lymphocytes of prostate cancer patients and controls. The following variables were assessed as DNA damage parameters: Tail DNA (%), Tail Length, Tail Moment, Olive Tail Moment, and Head DNA (%). Outliers were defined and removed by 1.5× IQR rule. The concentration of IL-17 was determined by ELISA method in patients (n=40) and controls (n=40), ROC analysis was performed to determine the usefulness of the variable. IG counts were determined from the complete blood count analysis. Since comet assay variables had non-normal distribution (Shapiro-Wilk p <0.05), Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the two groups. Results: In analyses where outliers had been excluded, Tail Length and Tail Moment were found to be significantly increased in patients compared to control subjects (p<0.001 & p=0.008, respectively), as expected due to greater DNA movement. The amount of Tail DNA (%) was found to be significantly decreased in patients (median 1.97%, IQR 0.21-3.59) compared to control subjects (median 3.97%, IQR 2.63-5.35; p<0.001), whereas Head DNA (%) was significantly increased correspondingly. Olive Tail Moment did not show a significant difference (p=0.377). Serum IL-17 concentration was significantly higher in control subjects (411.38 ng/mL) than in patients (204.58 ng/mL, p<0.0001), showing AUC of 0.8532 (95%CI: 0.7585-0.9480), 84% sensitivity and 80% specificity with a cut-off value of 237.6 ng/mL. IG levels were significantly increased in patients (mean 0.4431) compared to control subjects (mean 0.19). Conclusion: Parameters assessed using comet assay and serum IL-17 can be used to distinguish prostate cancer patients from controls. However, in some cases, these differences do not occur in the direction usually expected, indicating the complexity of the relationship between genomic instability, systemic inflammation, and prostate cancer.

The burden of medical errors is one of the biggest threats to patient safety and is a significant cause of morbidity, mortality and healthcare costs globally. It is crucial to have a clear understanding of the reasons for these errors and what can be done to prevent them from occurring to ensure that healthcare delivery is of high quality and safe. This narrative review synthesizes current evidence on medical errors and patient safety while specifically concentrating on the dimension of error across various health care settings and what interventions are employed to minimise preventable harm. Literature from PubMed, Semantic Scholar, Scopus, and Web of Science was retrieved from 2021 to 2026. Eligible peer-reviewed studies were identified by predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria and were synthesized in a narrative way. The review found that medication, diagnostic, surgical, communication, and documentation errors remain the most common forms of medical errors. They are driven by a combination of human, organisational and system related factors. The evidence suggests that a systems-based approach, with robust leadership, collaboration between multiple disciplines, ongoing professional learning and development, incident reporting frameworks, positive patient safety cultures, and digital health technologies are key elements of effective prevention. New innovations such as artificial intelligence, big data and large language models, and clinical decision support systems have the potential to enhance the accuracy of diagnosis, medication safety, and clinical decision making, but there are implementation, governance, ethical, and workforce readiness challenges to consider. In summary, efforts to prevent medical errors will need ongoing commitment from organisational leaders, evidence-based safety measures, and thoughtful implementation of technology. These strategies can be strengthened to help make healthcare systems safer and improve patient outcomes in a variety of clinical settings.

Background: The reliance on non-medical resources to obtain skin care guidance is a worldwide practice which may lead to unsafe consequences. Objectives: To evaluate public knowledge of skincare use and assess purchasing factors and safety attitudes among the Iraqi population. Methodology: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted among 375 individuals aged 18–60 years while participants with dermatological diseases were excluded participants were analyzed using SPSS (p < 0.05; Cramér’s V). Results: Seventy-three percent of people used cleansers, and seventy-two percent used moisturizers, but only sixty-five percent used sunscreen. In terms of overall knowledge, 34.4% of respondents had high knowledge, 45.1% had moderate knowledge, and 20.5% had low knowledge. The age group of 40–50 years old had the highest rate of good knowledge, making up 52.6% of the total. The likelihood of females possessing good knowledge was twice as high as the likelihood of males (41.0% opposed to 21.4%). Contrary to expectations, non-medical individuals had a higher level of good knowledge (44.3%) than medical participants (28.5%). The phrase "own research" was the most influential purchasing factor across all age groups. However, females relied much more on self-directed research, whereas males were more affected by family and dermatologists (p = 0.002). Conclusion: Iraq's public health is vulnerable due to suboptimal sunscreen use and significant demographic differences. To increase photoprotection awareness and safe consumer choices, targeted educational programs are needed, especially for males, younger individuals, and medical cohorts.