International Journal of Health Studies
Volume:3 Issue: 2, Apr-Jun 2017

Physical performance phenotypes are formed by the interaction of genetic and environmental factors, and gene polymorphisms can influence physical and athletic abilities. An ACE gene insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism has been reported to influence physical performance, but its mechanism remains controversial.
The frequency of this polymorphism in 146 healthy Iranian males was determined. Then, the associations between different ACE genotypes with physical performance factors were investigated for 43 of the 146 participants.
The frequencies of DD, ID and II genotypes were 38.5%, 41.5%, and 20%, respectively. Although there were no significant associations between the ACE polymorphisms and physical performance factors, the pulse pressure amplification, post-exercise heart rate, and resting heart rate were significantly different between variants with and without the I allele (P=0.02, 0.04, and 0.05, respectively). Furthermore, the ACE polymorphism was a significant predictor of exercise endurance and ventricular function in multivariate analyses (P The ACE polymorphism correlated with cardiovascular determinants of physical performance, rather than musculoskeletal factors. Therefore, the ACE I/D polymorphism could not be utilized as a singular genetic biomarker for the assessment of physical performance in the Iranian population. However, a combination of genetic and cardiovascular biomarkers may determine physical performance capacities.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, progressive autoimmune and central nervous system disease. By damaging the myelin sheaths that insulate nerve cell axa, MS disrupts neurological function, leading to various complications, particularly balance disorders. The aim of this study was to the compare the effectiveness of eight sessions of either Pilates or physioball exercise on balance and motor control for women with MS.
Thirty patients with MS (age±SD), who were recruited from the MS Society of Tehran using availability sampling. AParticipants were randomly assigned to one into three groups: pilates exercises (PE), physioball exercise (PBE), or a control group (CG). PE and PBE group members completed a corresponding eight-week training program, consisting of three supervised sessions per week, for 15 to 45 minutes each session. During the same time period, the CG performed their usual daily activities. A sharpened Romberg's test wa used to measured static balance, and motor control was evaluated by the timed up and go test. Both tests were administered to all participants prior to and following the intervention. Repeated measures analysis of variance was used to evaluate the data, with a significance level of P Participants in the PE and PBE conditions showed significantly greater improvements in mean balance and motor control scores compared to CG members. However, no significant differences in mean balance or motor control scores were observed when comparing the PBE and PE groups.
While both the PE and PBE programs correlated with improved balance and motor control among MS patients compared to the CG. By considering the effectiveness of these training programs, we recommended them as preventive intervention against falls and related injuries. {1.1 [EN] Meaning unclear. Check edit}.

It is a well-known fact that both statins and exercise have beneficial effects in preventing cardiovascular disease; however, no information is available about their combinatorial effect on the cardiac cell apoptosis and protein expression of SDF-1α/CXCR4 after myocardial infarction (MI). This study aimed to evaluate the combined effect of endurance training and atorvastatin on the apoptosis and protein expression of SDF-1α/CXCR4 in the cardiac tissue of rats following MI.
In total, 30 rats (8–10 weeks old, weighing 220–240 g) were randomly divided into five groups. Myocardial infarction was induced by subcutaneous injection of isoprenaline (150 mg/kg) in 2 consecutive days. Drug and training intervention was initiated 2 days after infarction and was continued for 4 weeks. To assess apoptotis and protein expression of SDF-1α/CXCR4 axis, Tunnel and IHC staining were performed, respectively.
The combination of endurance exercise and atorvastatin significantly reduced the number of apoptotic cells and increased the protein expression of SDF-1α compared with the other groups (P Results of this study revealed that the combined effects of training and atorvastatin are more efficient in reducing the apoptosis and upregulation of SDF-1α/CXCR4 than exercise or atorvastatin alone.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impacts cognitive behavioral sex therapy has on decreasing anxiety and increasing sexual function of people with vaginismus.
The sample for this study was randomly chosen from a population of married women aged 20 to 35 years who were referred to both Farhangian Shahid Abuzari and Vali-Asr Therapeutic Centers in Shahr-e-Ray. Thirty female subjects were chosen and were divided into two groups; experimental group and control group. The pre-test was administered for both groups. The pre-test consisted of the items on Spielberger’s state-trait anxiety inventory (SATI) as well as the items on Rosen et al. (2000) Female Sexual Function Index. Then, the subjects in experimental group were treated with 12 sessions of cognitive behavioral therapy for vaginismus’ sexual dysfunctions. At the end, post-test was administered for both groups.
The results of covariance analysis demonstrated that cognitive behavioral therapy for sexual dysfunctions will lower the anxiety and, at the same time, it can also enhance sexual performance of females with vaginismus in the experimental group compared with control (P Given the effects of cognitive behavioral therapy on people with vaginismu for improving sexual awareness and sexual function, it is recommended that young couples should be trained as this can help them to sustain their marital life and prevent sexual dysfunction

Violence against women forms one of the most brutal consequences of the economic, social, political, and cultural inequalities that exist between men and women. Violence can lead to less participation in social activities, unhappiness, emotional distress, and increased risks of maternal medical conditions such as hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, which are leading causes of maternal mortality worldwide.
We conducted a case–control study at Shahid-Beheshti hospital in Maragheh, Azarbaijan, Iran. About 110 women with pregnancy revealed hypertension and proteinuria (i.e., preeclampsia), and 451 normotensive women were interviewed to identify the prevalence of domestic violence. Information concerning women’s exposure to physical, emotional, and sexual violence during pregnancy was collected during personal interviews conducted after delivery and while patients were in hospital. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated from logistic regression models.
The prevalence of IPV was 56.1% among cases and 24.3% among controls. Women with some exposure to IPV during pregnancy revealed a 2.07-fold increased risk of preeclampsia compared to those who were not exposed to IPV (OR=2.07; 95% CI: 1.5–3.02). The association was strengthened slightly after adjusting for maternal age, parity and pre-pregnancy adiposity (OR=2.43; 95% CI: 1.7–3.24).
Violence is a social issue which is need to infrastructure of cultural and informs women and men to their right in society and interpersonal relationship. Empowering of women and equip of adolescent and teenage in schools is very essential in control violence too.

Cardiovascular disease is one of the main causes of mortality in the world and is primarily caused by high blood lipids. This study aimed to compare the effect of garlic and lemon mixture with mucilage of the okra pods in preventing the increase of plasma lipids in male Ratus.
This study was performed on 34 Ratus norvegicus alluvia. The Ratus were randomly divided into two classes, which were further subdivided in three groups each. A class of Ratus received food mixed with market oils for 60 days. Moreover, the Ratus in the treatment group received 10% okra mucilage and the mixture of garlic and lemon as gavage for 3 weeks. Data were analyzed by SPSS-21 software. The Mann–Whitney nonparametric test was used to compare each pair of groups. A value of 5% was considered as statistically significant.
Comparing the control group and the group receiving oil, we observed that lipid intake was effective and significantly increased the blood cholesterol in the oil group (p = 0.006). In Ratus receiving fatty foods, it was observed that treatment regimens reduced blood lipids. Moreover, a significant difference was observed between the two treatment groups, indicating a 10% mucilage advantage in reducing blood lipids compared with other treatment groups.
The results indicate that both treatments reduce blood lipids, but 10% mucilage in Ratus with high blood lipids has better efficacy than garlic and lemon mixture in reducing blood lipids.

Growth pattern in children is one of the most important indicators of public health. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of short stature in children and its influencing factors in Shahroud, northeast of Iran. In this cross-sectional study, 700 four-to-six year-old children were selected in 2015 through stratified random sampling. First, a list of preschools and kindergartens was prepared and samples were selected from 20 kindergartens and preschools. After coordination with parents and obtaining their respective consent, heights and weights of children were measured. Children with short stature were followed up with further diagnostic tests, including hormonal and biochemical tests, and their bone age was determined. In this study, there were 378 (54.2%) girls and 322 (45.8%) boys. The prevalence of short stature was 2.3%. In 74.9% of cases, short stature was due to pathological causes, and in 25.1% it was due to natural and familial factors. The results showed that anemia and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1)-related disorders were the most frequent underlying causes of short stature in children. There were significant relationships between short stature at birth (P=0.001), positive history of mother’s short stature (P=0.004), and children’s physical activity (P=0.029), but no significant relationship was observed between short stature and gender, birth weight, children’s living with parents and family’s economic status (P≥0.05). Birth height, mother’s short stature and physical inactivity are risk factors identified in this study which can influence short stature of four-to-six-year-old children.